The MU Ancilla Women's Basketball Team took the long road trip to Lansing for a key MCCAA Western Conference game against the Lansing Stars and came out with a 54-52 win. It was the Chargers' defense that carried the day again, holding their second straight opponent to just 52 points on 30% shooting. The defense held Lansing to just 17 first half points and 28 points through three quarters before a late Lansing rally got them to 52 points.
The Chargers were once again led by the duo of Kyra Duncan and Jayci Allen. Duncan led the way with 21 points and 4 rebounds while Allen added another double-double to her season, this time with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Both knocked in key baskets late. After a Lansing FT tied the game at the two minute make at 47, Jayci Allen drilled a corner 3-pointer off a set play to give the Chargers a 50-47 lead they would never relinquish. It was Duncan who grabbed an offensive rebound and finished in traffic with :45 left in the game to give the Chargers a 52-48 lead.
Lansing was able to knock in a 3-point shot to cut the lead to 52-51 before Alexis German and Nicole Swain each added a late free throw each to round out the Charger scoring. MU Ancilla needed one last defensive stop with 7 seconds remaining in the game. Lansing was able to get the ball up the court quickly before Samaria Freeman rotated and made an outstanding challenge of the Lansing shot attempt the ended up falling short of the rim as time expired.
Coach Gould commented on his team getting a key MCCAA Western Conference road win. "Winning on the road is never easy as we have talked about all year. It is even more difficult in conference play. I thought we set the tone tonight with our defensive effort early in the game. To hold a team to 17 points in the first half on their home court says alot about the effort our girls put forth. I thought we were able to mix in both our man defense and zone defense to keep them uncomfortable which was important and I thought the girls did a great job in knowing their scouting report. To win in college basketball, you have to be able to get stops, especially when you are not a team that scores 70 points or more. The first three quarters of defense gave us just enough room to hold on and grab this win."
The Chargers had a dominant night on the boards, outrebounding Lansing 50-22 and holding the Stars to just five offensive rebounds. The rebounding number has proven to be a stat that has been a key in winning or losing for MU Ancilla.
"For us, we always have rebounding listed as our top focus point. The girls have really taken ownership in how they rebound the ball. Jayci Allen is a consistent rebounder who will give us a minimum of 10 rebounds per game. The rest of the group has started to pick up the slack in pursuing the ball. All eight of our players had at least two rebounds tonight and Nicole Swain had a career high with 12 rebounds. If we can defend like we are capable and rebound like we did tonight, we will hang around in most games."
With the win, MU Ancilla moves to 17-8 on the season and 5-4 in MCCAA Western Conference play. They will return to action on February 22nd when they host co-leader Kalamazoo Valley who currently sits atop the conference with only one loss.
