SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Saginaw Valley State University women's basketball team rallied to top Truman State University (RV) on the final day of the Oasis Hotel & Convention Center Thanksgiving Classic on Wednesday in Springfield, Mo.

The Cardinals trailed by 12 points at the half and by four points heading to the fourth but outscored the Bulldogs25-16 in the fourth to head home with a 77-72 victory. The win stops a two-game skid and moves the Cardinals to 5-2 this season.

How it Happened:

• Kaitlyn Zarycki picked right back up where she left off in the game on Tuesday with nine points in the first quarter against Truman State and the Cardinals were tied with the Bulldogs 23-23 after 10 minutes.
• Maddie Re and Ellie Weltha each scored seven points in the second quarter for Truman State as the Bulldogs built a 45-33 lead at the break.
• SVSU chipped away in the third quarter starting with the first five points of the half from Zarycki.
• Maddie Maloney hit a 3-pointer with six minutes left in the third to cut the deficit to three points.
• After Truman State rebuilt a seven-point advantage, Maloney connected again from deep to pull the Cardinals within four at the end of the third.
• The Bulldogs started the fourth strong and led 64-54 with 6:37 to play.
• Zarycki led a 15-3 run for the Cardinals over the next two minutes, scoring all the points for SVSU and giving her team a two-point lead.
• Maloney connected on a jump shot with 40 seconds to play to put the Cardinals up four and SVSU hit its free throws late to secure the win.

Inside the Box Score:

• Zarycki set a new career-high for the second straight night, scoring 39 points on 14-of-20 shooting, and hit all eight attempts at the free-throw line.
• Maloney scored 20 points, including four 3-pointers.
• Maddie Barrie added eight points and four rebounds, while Jessica Massey scored seven points off the bench.
• The Cardinals shot 26-of-54 from the field, 10-of-20 from deep, and a perfect 15-of-15 at the free-throw line.
• The Bulldogs outrebounded the Cardinals 30-28.
• Ellie Weltha scored 25 points and added a game-high 25 rebounds to lead Truman State.

From Head Coach Jenny Pruett:

This was such a great experience for our team. Coming out and competing on a national stage is exactly what I thought this team was ready for. Both teams we competed against had such incredible players. They were well-coached and competed hard. But I think we had the best player on the floor in both games.

Kaitlyn Zarycki was unstoppable. She has worked so incredibly hard for this moment. And she shined. The thing I love most about this team is that everyone is genuinely happy for her success. And that is because we all know she doesn't do that without everyone else around her.

Everyone on this team plays a role and in these two games that was so true. I'm proud of the way we competed. Down 10 with six minutes to go, dog tired, the seventh game in 13 days… but they wanted it. I love their toughness. I love their will to win. I love their heart. I love this team.

What a great way to head into GLIAC play.

Up Next:

The Cardinals open the 2021-22 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference season against No. 18 Grand Valley State University at 6 pm Thursday in Allendale, Mich.