Box Score
The Malone University women's basketball team had its 2011-12 campaign come to a close on Tuesday night following a hard-fought 75-65 road loss to Central State University in the Opening Round of the Ohio Independent Championships.
The Marauders, seeded fourth among the seven-team OIC field, improved to 15-11 with the victory and will now travel to Cedarville University to face the top-seeded Yellow Jackets in semifinal action on Friday. The fifth-seeded Pioneers, meanwhile, wrapped up their season with a 12-15 overall record. The 12 victories mark Malone's highest win total since the 2006-07 squad put together an 18-12 campaign.
Central State took a 40-33 lead into the locker room at halftime of Tuesday's contest after connecting on over 50% (19 of 37) of their shot attempts over the first 20 minutes. A pair of free throws by Pioneer forward
Lindsy Snyder trimmed the deficit to 42-39 in the early stages of the second stanza. However, this three-point margin was as close as Malone would get over the remainder of the contest as an 11-2 Marauder scoring run quickly stretched the hosts' lead to double digits.
On the evening, Central State knocked down 31 of 61 (50.8%) field-goal attempts, two of six (33.3%) three-pointers and 11 of 19 (57.9%) free throws. Malone countered by connecting on 23 of 60 (38.3%) shots from the field, three of 15 (20%) treys, and 11 of 19 (57.9%) foul shots. The Pioneers held a 39-35 advantage in total rebounds but also committed 20 turnovers compared to just 11 miscues for CSU.
Snyder concluded an outstanding freshman year by posting her ninth double-double of the season with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Guard
Selana Reale added 12 points and eight boards while guard
Sydnee Penn tallied 12 points and five rebounds.
Guard Iniquia Snell netted a game-high 24 points to lead the way for the Marauders.
With the conclusion of the 2011-12 campaign, the Pioneers look to next season when they will be in the third and final year of the transition to NCAA Division II. With Malone University having recently been accepted into the GLIAC (Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference), the Pioneers will play a full GLIAC schedule in 2012-13 in advance of their anticipated full NCAA Division II membership in 2013-14.
