Box Score

The Malone University women's basketball team picked up its third straight victory on Thursday evening with a 64-56 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference triumph at Lake Erie College. 

After falling behind 53-51 with just under five minutes remaining, the Pioneers (10-5 overall, 5-4 GLIAC) quickly fought back, rattling off seven straight points to grab a 58-53 advantage.  The Storm (6-9 overal, 1-8 GLIAC ) drained a quick three-pointer to cut the deficit to 58-56 with 1:56 showing on the clock, but that was as close as the hosts would get as Malone closed out the game with six unanswered points.

Guard Deborah Simmers led the way for the Pioneers, netting a game-high 24 points.  The senior from Anchorage, Alaska connected on nine of 13 free throws and six of nine shots from the field, including all three of her attempts from beyond the three-point arc.   Guard Sydnee Penn added 12 points and seven rebounds.  Guard Leslie Raifsnider contributed seven points and five boards while guard Logan Pastor registered five assists and a game-high 11 rebounds.

Guard Alyssa Brumbaugh and forward Chloe Irish each tallied 12 points to pace Lake Erie.

The Storm took a 5-0 lead 60 seconds into the contest.  Malone then clamped down on the defensive end, building a 21-9 advantage after allowing just four Lake Erie points over the next 12 minutes.  The Pioneers took a 36-28 edge into the locker room at intermission and then maintained their lead until the latter stages of the second half when the Storm used a 9-0 spurt to pull in front 53-51.

Overall, Malone shot 47.8% (22 of 46) from the floor, 38.9% (seven of 18) from three-point range and 61.9% (13 of 21) from the foul line.  Lake Erie, meanwhile, connected on 33.3% (19 of 57) of its field goal attempts, 15.8% (three of 19) of its treys and 62.5% (15 of 24) of its free throws.

The Storm held an 11-6 edge on the offensive glass but trailed 39-36 in total rebounds.

The Pioneers will be back in action on the road at 1:00 p.m. Saturday when they take on last year's NCAA Division II National Champions and current GLIAC South Division leaders, Ashland University (8-5 overall, 6-3 GLIAC).  Fans can listen to live audio during the game on the Malone Sports Network (radio broadcast on ESPN 990 AM and streaming on www.espn990.com)