December 2, 2021
HEARTBREAK IN CLEVELAND
Perrenial Community College powerhouse, Walters State invaded the "Q" on Wednesday night for a pair of key early season NJCAA/TCCAA Region VII matchups with Cleveland State. The Ladies contest saw a pair of undefeated (in conference play) teams knock heads from start to finish. After a seesaw battle all night long, the Lady Senators finally came out on top by a final score of 69-61.
Nicky Jones and Kyisha Dalton hit a layup each in the early going for the Lady Cougars as the home team got off to a good start against the powerful inside game and much taller Lady Senators. To say it was a physical game would be and understatement as the teams combined to take 26 free throws (13 each) in the first two periods.
After leading 19-16 at the first stop, the Lady Cougars suddenly went cold from the field as Walters State picked up the pace to jump into the lead. Kiera Hill converted a three-point play while Vertonia Bady began to rain 3-point bombs down on the home team, hitting three in a row to help the visitors to take the lead and hold a 36-28 halftime advantage.
Cleveland State opened the third quarter with a 12-4 run to take the lead as De'Zah Lacy tossed in a three-ball, a layup and a steal and another layup to spur the run. Walters State then responded with a mini run of their own as they regained a 49-44 lead at the third stop.
Despite battling foul trouble for much of the game, the Cleveland ladies just kept coming as they sliced the lead to two points a couple of times in the fourth frame, but were never quite able to get over the hump. Emma Harig converted a three-point play and Asjah Harrell added a long trey to the cause, but the Lady Senators managed to hit just enough free throws down the stretch to secure the hard-earned win.
The Lady Cougars (6-1, 3-1) shot a frigid 30% from the floor for the night while the Lady Senators (6-3, 5-0) were a little better at 41%. Ten missed free tosses haunted Cleveland State (19-29) as did the 2-18 shooting from three-point land. Harig led the way for Cleveland State with 19 points and 9 rebounds and Lacy finished with 16. Hill ruled the paint for Walters State with 15 points and 13 boards while Bady and G. G. Hollingsworth added 14 points apiece.
