KENOSHA, Wisc. - The Lake Superior State women's basketball team fell to the Wisconsin-Parkside Rangers by a final score of 87-66 in the team's final regular season Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) game at the De Simone Gymnasium in Kenosha, Wisc. on Saturday, Feb. 19.
First Half:
The first quarter was evenly matched between the two GLIAC teams as the Rangers held a one-point lead (19-18) after ten minutes of play. The Rangers opened the scoring when Alyssa Nelson made a three-pointer after a Laker turnover on the first possession to take a 3-0 lead.
Makenzie Bray made a layup to get the Lakers on the board at 9:15 of the first quarter and her first three-pointer of the game with 7:00 on the clock tied the game at five. Mattison Rayman tied the game at seven at 5:50 and Carson Nitz made back-to-back free throws at the halfway mark of the quarter to give the Lakers their first lead of the game (9-7).
Parkside responded with an eight-point scoring run to go ahead 15-9 over the Lakers with 3:04 left in the first quarter. The Lakers, led by Bray, managed to pull back within a point before the end of the quarter. Bray added seven points in the final three minutes, including her second three-pointer of the game to close out the quarter down, 19-18.
The Rangers began to extend their lead over the Lakers in the second quarter as the home team outscored the Lakers, 25-14 in the frame.
Margot Woughter made two free throws in the first 10 seconds to regain the Laker lead (20-19) and freshman CeCe Hacker made a layup at 8:46 of the quarter to keep the Lakers up by a point (22-21). After another field goal by Hacker and two more made free throws by Woughter, the Lakers held the lead (26-25) at the 7:35 mark.
The game remained close by the midpoint of the second quarter as one point separated the two conference rivals with Parkside leading 31-30. But, with 4:28 left in the first half, the Rangers would score 14 of the final 16 points of the quarter. At the close of the first half, the Rangers led 44-32 over the Lakers.
Second Half:
Rayman made a jump shot for the Lakers to open the scoring in the second half and after the Rangers made a layup, Woughter made a three-point shot to bring the Lakers back within single digits (46-37).
Parkside quickly regained the double-digit lead as Alyssa Nelson scored five of the Rangers next seven points to give the home team a 16 point advantage (53-37) early in the third quarter. Bray and Rayman each added two field goals for the Lakers as the quarter played on but the Rangers had built a 21 point lead in the game with 2:18 left on the clock in the third quarter (66-45). Parkside led 70-47 heading into the last 10 minutes of the game.
In the fourth quarter, the Lakers outscored the Rangers, 19-17 but it would not be enough to overtake the lead. Beginning with a made free throw by Bray with 8:34 left in the game, the Lakers would score 12 of the game's next 15 points to cut the deficit to 17 points (78-61) with 4:26 left to play. The Rangers would not let the Lakers come any closer to evening the score and would seal the conference win by a final score of 87-66.
Breaking Down the Game: Bray continues to be the Lakers leader offensively as she recorded a career-high 30 points for her team against Parkside. The senior forward went 11-for-22 from the field, which included two three-pointers and also made six of eight free throws in the game. Bray also added two rebounds and a pair of assists for the Lakers. Rayman posted 12 points and 10 rebounds, which led the Lakers, as she recorded her 11th double-double of the season.
The Lakers finished the game with a 42.9 shooting percentage, going 21-for-49 in the game. On the other end of the floor, the Rangers went 33-for-58 in the game to total a 56.9 shooting percentage. Parkside outrebounded Lake State, 33-22, in the game.
What's Next
The Lakers will play their final series of the regular season next weekend as the team hosts the Northern Michigan Wildcats and Michigan Tech Huskies at the Bud Cooper Gymnasium in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. The game against the Wildcats is set for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff on Thursday, Feb. 24 while the Lakers will wrap up the regular season on Saturday, Feb. 26 against the Huskies at 1:00 p.m. Prior to Saturday's game, the team will hold a pre-game ceremony to honor the team's graduating seniors.
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