Women’s Basketball Drops Second Game of Back-to-Back against Purdue Northwest (with photos)

SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. – The Lake Superior State women’s basketball team dropped the second game of a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletics Conference (GLIAC) weekend series against the Purdue Northwest Pride by a final score of 61-52 on Sunday, Jan. 17 in the Bud Cooper Gymnasium in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.  

First Half: 

After yesterday’s game, the two GLIAC rivals would combine for a low-scoring, defensive minded first half. The Pride finished the first twenty minutes up by a point, 19-18, over the Lakers. 

It took nearly three minutes of action for either team to get on the scoreboard in the game. Redshirt junior guard Sadie DeWildt put the Lakers on the board with a jump shot to take a 2-0 lead over the Pride. Over a minute later, the Pride would respond with a three point jump shot from Molly DeValkenaere to go up 3-2. 

With 4:01 left in the first quarter, Rebecca Villaneuva made a layup to regain the Lakers lead (4-3) but Purdue Northwest would close out the quarter with a eight point scoring run to take a seven point lead over the Lakers (11-4). 

In the second quarter, the Lakers outscored the Pride, 13-8. The Lakers would score the first four points of the quarter as DeWildt and Mattison Rayman each netted a layup for the Lakers to bring the Lakers within two points of the Pride (11-9). 

Just under the five minute mark of the quarter, the Pride would score back-to-back baskets from the three point line to build an eight point lead over the Lakers. But, the Lakers would once again work to erase the lead and find a way back into the game. Rayman scored on a layup with 3:35 left in the quarter and Villaneuva would make a shot from the three to bring the Lakers within three points of the Pride. Margot Woughter would cap off the scoring in the first half with a layup to make it a one point game at the end of twenty minutes (19-18). 

Second Half: 

To start the second half, the Pride would come out strong over the Lakers as the visitors scored the first eight points of the third quarter. After falling behind by 10 points with 4:05 left in the quarter, the Lakers would respond to cut the deficit in half. Woughter added three points in that stretch to make it a 34-27 game heading into the final quarter of play.

The Lakers could not find a way to hold off the Pride’s offense in the final quarter and would trail by double digits for most of the final ten minutes of play. With under two minutes remaining in the game, Woughter scored four consecutive three pointers for the Lakers to bring the team within nine points (59-50) but the Lakers ran out of time. The game ended in a final score of 61-52.

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Breaking Down the Game:

Woughter led the way for the Lakers with 22 points in the game, which included the four three pointers she made in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. The sophomore guard also added six rebounds and an assist. Rayman posted 10 points to rank second on the Lakers in the game while also adding a team-high seven rebounds.

The Lakers finished the game with a 38.8 shooting percentage, going 18-for-47 against PNW. On the other end of the court, the Pride went 19-for-58 in the game to total a 32.8 shooting percentage. Lake Superior was outrebounded by Purdue Northwest, 34-25, in the game.

What’s Next: 

As part of the alternating GLIAC schedule this season, the Lakers will be on the road next weekend to take on the Michigan Tech Huskies. The first game is set for 3:00 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 22 and the two teams will tip off at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 23. Both games will be played at the SDC Gymnasium in Houghton, Mich.