DETROIT -- The Wayne State University women's basketball squad (14-11 overall, 8-9 GLIAC) notched an 81-62 home victory over Parkside (13-12 overall, 10-7 GLIAC) at the Matthaei on Saturday afternoon.  WSU has won six of its last nine contests.

HOW IT HAPPENED
WSU opened the contest with a five-point spurt, including a triple by senior Sadia Johnson (Kalamazoo, Mich. / Central), followed by a layup from sophomore Sam Cherney (Farmington Hills, Mich. / North Farmington).  The Warriors allowed two UWP points at the 7:54 mark before tallying another five points for a 10-2 lead.  Four straight Ranger points cut their deficit to four (10-6) with 6:14 on the clock.  Each team scored two points from the charity stripe to maintain a four-point difference.  A layup by sophomore Kate Sherwood (Canton, Mich. / Belleville) gave the Green and Gold a 14-8 advantage, but Parkside's Taylor Stephen responded with a triple at the 3:19 mark.  A 1:39 scoring drought for both teams was snapped when sophomore Grace George (DeWitt, Mich.) made two free throws each on back-to-back possessions for an 18-11 lead.  UWP's Maddy Harrison drained a three-pointer with one second on the clock.  Wayne State led 18-14 at the end of the first stanza.

Parkside's Alyssa Nelson drained a triple to open the second quarter, but senior Nastassja Chambers (Ypsilanti, Mich. / Arbor Prep) responded with a layup to extend the WSU lead to three (20-17).  Five straight points from Stephen gave the Rangers a 22-20 lead at the 7:16 mark, their first of the contest.  Johnson tallied a point from the foul line before the team's exchanged a bucket.  Nelson contributed another bucket from long distance, but Johnson responded with her own three-pointer pulling the Warriors within 27-26 with 5:48 remaining in the period.  Wayne State limited the visiting team to free throws for about six minutes.  During this time, WSU outscored Parkside 8-4 to regain its lead.  After allowing a last-second jumper for Nelson, the Green and Gold had a 34-33 advantage at the half.

Maddie Harrison drained a three pointer to start the second half for the final UWP lead of the game.  Over the next 4:11, the Warriors outscored UWP 13-2 for a 47-38 advantage.  The Rangers recorded seven-straight points to pull within two at the 3:55 mark.  WSU held Parkside scoreless for 2:54, while tallying six points to lead by eight (53-45).  UWP went on a four-point spurt, but Johnson topped the quarter off with a triple to lead 56-49.

WSU scored the first four points of the final period for a 60-49 advantage.  Ranger Alisha Murphy made a long-distance bucket, but sophomore Alexis Miller (Howell, Mich.) responded with her own three pointer at the 7:41 mark.  Over the next 2:28, the Green and Gold limited the visiting team to just two free throws, while tallying four points to lead by 13 (67-54).  Nelson drained a triple with 5:11 remaining to pull the visiting team within 10.   Chambers made a layup, but Nelson followed with a conventional three-point play.  A nine-point Warrior spurt, including four points from Miller and an NBA triple from senior Alex Matus (Millbury, Ohio / Toledo Central Catholic), which gave the home team a 78-60 advantage with 2:15 on the clock.  Murphy tallied the final two points for UWP at the 2:02 mark.  Wayne State scored three points to finish the contest with an 81-62 victory.

TEAM STATS
Wayne State shot 49 percent (28-of-57) from the field, compared to 32 percent (20-of-62) for the Rangers.  The Warriors connected on 6-of-13 (46 percent) from beyond the arc, with UWP making just 9-of-33 (27 percent).  WSU had a 43-35 edge in rebounding, while also leading 9-3 in steals and 5-0 in blocked shots.

LEADING THE WARRIORS
Johnson scored a game-best 21 points, including 5-of-6 from the charity stripe.  Cherney notched her fourth career double-double with 13 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.  Chambers (13) and Sherwood (10) also scored in double figures, while George dished out a team-best three assists.

LEADING THE RANGERS
Nelson tallied 19 points, while Harrison (16), Stephen (14), and Murphy (12) also scored in double figures.  Stephen grabbed a team-high eight boards and handed out a game-best seven assists.

UP NEXT
Wayne State will travel to Northwood on Thursday, Feb. 20th, with tip-off scheduled for 6:00 p.m.