Lady Coyotes cruise to third straight win 81-64 over Saint Mary
By: David Toelle, KWU Sports Information

LEAVENWORTH – Kansas Wesleyan rallied after being down seven points early, to cruise past Saint Mary 81-64 on Saturday night at the Ryan Sports Center.

Saint Mary hit seven of its first nine shots as they jumped out to a 12-5 lead with 16 minutes left in the first half. The Lady Coyotes didn’t fade away, instead using a 15-8 run to tie things up at 20-all on three free throws by Sarah Montoya with 11:35 left.

The Spires would take a brief 21-20 lead before the Lady Coyotes would use a 7-0 run to take control, leading 27-21 with 8:53 left in the first half. Wesleyan would increase its lead to 10, at 37-27 with 5:03 left, and would lead by as many as 15 with 1:33 left on a bucket by Madison Askins.

Askins would score again with just under a minute left in the half, as the Lady Coyotes took a 14-point lead into the break at 48-34.

Wesleyan would lead by as many as 18 on a three by Charressa Gray with 15:41 left before the Spires made a final charge at the Lady Coyotes. Saint Mary got within 12 at the 11:57 mark on a steal and layup by Jamie Mireles, before Montoya would knock down a three on Wesleyan’s next possession, giving the Coyotes a 67-52 lead with 11:41 left.

Jenn Lee would hit a three with 4:34 left giving the Lady Coyotes a 20-point lead with 4:34 left.

Saint Mary would get as close as 15 with 1:40 left, but four straight points by Gray would give the Lady Coyotes a 19-point lead with 30 seconds left. Liz Gillespie would hit a pair of free throws to give the final 81-64 score.

Dixon would lead Wesleyan (10-18, 6-12) with 18 points, while Gray added 16 and Montoya had 14. The Lady Coyotes were on fire from the floor, going 24-of-53 for 55.8 percent, including knocking down 14-of-25 threes. Dittmer had eaight rebounds to lead the Lady Coyotes who outrebounded Saint Mary 38-33.

Saint Mary (5-23, 2-16) was led by Janae Garcia with 17, while Gillespie and Lindsey Seevers each had 12. The Spires shot 21-of-60 from the floor for 35 percent. Garcia also led the Spires with eight boards.

Saint Mary and the Lady Coyotes will play again in Monday’s KCAC Tournament Play-In Game at 7:00 at Muir Gym in Salina. The winner will move on to face the no.2 seeded Ottawa Braves on Thursday night in Ottawa.

-- KWU SI --