The 18th-ranked Lyon College women’s basketball team picked up right where they left off in 2018 as the Scots opened up the New Year with a 60-52 win over (RV) William Woods in an American Midwest Conference (AMC) battle on Thursday night. The Scots extended their current winning streak to 11 games and now stand at 11-1 (7-0 AMC) on the season. William Woods fell to 8-5 (4-3 AMC) after the loss.
The Scots knew they were in a fight early as the game remained close throughout the first quarter. William Woods opened up the game with a three-pointer by Peyton Greenlee, which was answered by a pair of buckets by Samantha French. The two teams would go back-and-forth as the score became tied at 9-9 and again at 11-11. The Owls gained some momentum in the final minute of the first quarter as Lexy Ganaway and Sommer Burgard gave WWU a 16-11 lead with 18 seconds to go. The Scots worked the ball around in their final possession of the quarter as Keli Romas found Alexis Moore open in the corner for a three just before the buzzer that cut the deficit to 16-14.
The three by Moore sparked the Scots offensively in the second quarter as a three by Madison Riley broke a 22-22 tie. Riley would add another bucket on the Scots’ next possession to push their lead to five, but the Owls pulled back within two just before the half on a basket and a free throw by Kasey Hazell.
Lyon opened up the third quarter on a 9-0 run thanks to a pair of free throws by French, a three by Ali Tucker and a bucket each from Riley and Liz Henderson. The Owls responded with a big run of their own over the next four minutes of the quarter to pull back within three at 37-34. A three-pointer by Henderson would end the rally for the Owls as the two teams traded a free throw each down the stretch as Lyon took a 41-35 lead into the final quarter.
The Scots once again saw their lead grow back to double-digits as a basket by French with 1:20 remaining gave Lyon a 60-47 advantage. The Owls attempted one final comeback, but the deficit was too large to overcome.
French and Riley paced the Scots offensively as both players finished with 14 points each. Henderson and Tucker finished in double-digits scoring as well as the pair netted 10 points each. Ndoye had a big game crashing the glass as she grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds. Greenlee ended the game with 15 points for the Owls.
The Scots will now prepare for their biggest test so far this season as they welcome No. 2 Columbia College to Becknell Gymnasium on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Article via Lyon College Sports Information Director Matt Jagodzinski
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