Women's basketball stumbles into playoffs

WSU loses fourth straight game; will face Hillsdale again

Jeff Buck
Staff Writer

Turnovers were a key factor, allowing Hillsdale to beat Wayne State, 69-62, in a playoff preview game Saturday at Hillsdale.

WSU (10-17, 8-9 GLIAC) committed 30 turnovers, way above their 19 per game average and recorded only two assists, while entering the game with an average of 13.1 per contest.

The Warriors recorded their fourth consecutive loss but have insight on what they need to accomplish in practice before Tuesday's contest.

"We're really going to need to work on protecting the ball," guard Cherita Smith said. "It will be important to practice protecting the ball and boxing out before we play them again."

Chastidy Miller tied the game at two on a lay-up, ending an almost three-minute Warrior drought to begin the game. Despite sloppy passing, WSU took control of the game by going on an 11-6 run, building their lead to six with 8:47 to play in the first half.

The Chargers fueled a run of their own, with a pair of free throws followed by a 3-pointer from Lauren Fewins cutting the Warrior-lead to one.

Leading by as many as five, Hillsdale watched their lead disappear as Ralphaneé Peyton sank two lay-ups and Miller hit two free throws to tie the score at 25 going into the break.

Entering the second half it was all Hillsdale. Crystal Yoder sparked a 6-0 run for the Chargers to give her team a six-point advantage.

The Warriors didn't deflate, though, and made a few runs of their own.

Rebecca Meyer drew a foul while making a bucket and hit the free throw to cut the WSU deficit to three before Joy Nash hit a jumper to bring the Warriors to within one point.

Hillsdale quickly extinguished the threat, going on a 14-4 run to build its largest lead of the night at 11 points. It was short-lived once again, as Nash and Brooke Bowers created a WSU run capped by a 3-pointer from Jessica Howard to cut the Chargers' lead to two points.

Nash kept the Warriors close on perfect free-throw shooting (8-of-8) but WSU was unable to stop the Chargers from pulling away at the end of the game.

Nash led the Warriors with 18 points (5-of-17 from the field). Peyton finished with 12 rebounds accompanied by 8 points (4-of-4 from the field) and three steals.

Hillsdale finished with three players in double figures scoring. Jessie Miller recorded 16 points while Laura Fewins and Nikki Wustman scored 12 and 11 points respectively.

The Warriors and Chargers tip off in the first round of the GLIAC tournament on Tuesday at Hillsdale.

The South End, February 26, 2007