SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. - The Lake Superior State women's basketball team fell by a final score of 79-65 in a game against the Ashland University Eagles on Saturday, Feb. 27 in the Bud Cooper Gymnasium in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. in the final game of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) regular season.
First Half:
In the first half of the game, the Lakers outscored the Eagles in both quarters to hold a 37-33 lead after twenty minutes of play.
Mattison Rayman scored the first two points of the game as she made a layup at 8:36 to give the Lakers a 2-0 lead. LSSU would go on a six point run to hold an 8-3 lead over the Eagles and when Jaden Wilder made a three pointer at 5:05 of the first quarter, the Lakers went ahead 11-5.
With 3:20 left in the first quarter, Sadie DeWildt would score on a jump shot from behind the three point line to put the Lakers up by double digits (16-5). Ashland scored nine of the final 10 points in the quarter but the Lakers held onto a three point line (17-14) at the end of the first quarter.
The two teams would exchange points in the first two minutes of the second quarter and the Eagles would trail by one point (21-20) with just under eight minutes remaining in the first half. Ashland would score on a layup to go ahead by a point (22-21) but Wilder would regain the Laker lead minutes later with a three pointer (24-22).
Makenzie Bray netted a three pointer with 3:27 remaining in the half and would give the Lakers a six point lead (33-27). Bray would score the final two points of the half as she made a layup in the last minute of the half to give the Lakers a four point advantage at the end of the opening twenty minutes (37-33).
Second Half:
In the first minute of the third quarter, the Eagles would take a one point lead over the Lakers (38-37). Rayman would respond with the next seven points for the Lakers and the teams would remain tied with 5:40 left in the quarter (44-44). Rayman would bring her total in the quarter up to nine points when she regained the Laker lead with a layup at 3:41 (48-47).
Ashland would score the last four points in the third quarter to hold a four point lead over LSSU (53-49) heading into the final ten minutes of play.
In the first two minutes of the game, the Lakers would come back within a point of the Eagles (55-54). Ashland would rebuild the lead back to six points but the Lakers would respond with a layup from Bray and a three pointer from Wilder to come back within a point (60-59).
With just under five minutes left, the game was still tight with the Eagles ahead by a point (64-63). Ashland's offense would go on a 10 point run to take a 74-63 lead with 1:29 left on the clock. The lead was too much for the Lakers to overtake in the final minutes and the game ended with the Eagles taking the win, 79-65.
Breaking Down the Game:
Four Lakers finished the game with double digit point totals, including Rayman and Bray who shared the team-lead in points with 13. Rayman went 6-for-13 against the Eagles while also adding 10 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season. Rayman finished the regular season with 12 games with double-digit point totals and has strung together a streak of nine consecutive games to close out the regular season.
Wilder, who led the team in three pointers in the game, went 4-for-8 against Ashland and finished the contest with 11 points. Rebecca Villaneuva rounded out the top scorers for the Lakers in the game as the senior forward totaled 10 points for LSSU.
The Lakers finished the game with a 47.4 shooting percentage, going 27-for-57 against Ashland. On the other end of the floor, the Eagles went 32-for-57 in the game to total a 56.1 shooting percentage. Lake Superior outrebounded Ashland, 30-26, in the game.
What's Next
The Lakers will await the results in the remaining GLIAC games to find out which team they will be matching up against in the 2021 GLIAC Basketball Tournament, which is set to begin on Tuesday, March 2. lssulakers.com will have the information as soon as it is released.
Follow the Lakers
Due to State of Michigan, GLIAC and Lake Superior State University mandates, fans are not currently permitted to attend any Laker sporting events. Even though spectators cannot currently attend Laker home games, there are still a number of ways that fans will be able to follow the game action. All Laker home games during the 2021 season will be available to watch live on Stretch TV. For more information or to sign up for a subscription, visit https://portal.stretchinternet.com/lssu/. Fans can also tune in to the radio broadcast on ESPN 1400, the official radio station of Laker basketball.
For more information, visit lssulakers.com
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