The Basics 

Score: Saginaw Valley 79, Michigan Tech 67
Records: SVSU (12-3, 8-1 GLIAC) | MTU (10-4, 6-3 GLIAC) 
Location: O'Neill Arena - University Center, Mich. 

UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. - The Saginaw Valley State University women's basketball team claimed its fourth straight victory on Saturday afternoon, using a dominant third quarter to post an impressive 79-67 victory at home over the Michigan Tech University Huskies. With the victory, SVSU now holds a two-game lead over the Huskies and Grand Valley State in the GLIAC North Division.

The Cardinals came out with a slim 21-19 lead after a very competitive opening quarter that featured seven ties and a pair of lead changes. SV got four straight points to open the first quarter from Halee Nieman, which would mark the most either team would lead by in the first 10 minutes with the score 4-0. The seventh tie of the frame came with 55 ticks left on the clock and the score 19-19 after a three from Michigan Tech. Katelyn Carriere would give the home team the two-point lead, however, making a layup with 26 seconds left to put the count at 21-19 in SVSU's advantage heading into the second.

In the second quarter, things would be just as competitive, with the score remaining within five points through the end of the first half. A triple from Nieman and a good jumper from Carriere gave the Cardinals a five point lead at 26-21 with 8:15 to play in the half. Carriere would later tie the game for the 11th time at 33-33 with 3:12 showing and add another bucket to give SV a 35-33 edge with 1:15 showing on the clock. A buzzer-beating shot for Tech at the end of the half would knot the score at 35-35, tying the contest for the 12th time.

Hannah Settingsgaard opened the second half scoring with a pair of free throws, giving SV a 37-35 edge at the 8:46 marker of the third. The lead moved to four points twice and would be tied for a 14th and final time with the score 43-43 and 3:48 on the clock. From there, Saginaw Valley went on a 12-2 run to make the score 57-45 at the end of the third frame. The Cards posted a 22-10 overall advantage in the quarter and got points from Abby Schlicher, Abby Duffy, Francesca Coury, Carriere and Wendling in the balanced attack.

The home squad nailed back-to-back triples to open the fourth quarter, using strikes from downtown from Carriere and Coury to give the team its largest lead of 18 points with the score 63-45. The closest the Huskies would get from there was a nine point deficit (71-62) with just 58 seconds left, but SVSU stayed strong and built its lead back out to 15 points at 79-64 before a late three from Tech put the game at its final count of 79-67, sealing the 12-point win for the Cardinals. 

Inside the Boxscore 

• Carriere was stellar in the victory, matching a season-high with 25 points and adding a season-best eight assists. She added three rebounds and a block and committed just a single turnover. She was named the Meijer "Player of the Game" for her efforts in her 38 minutes of play. 
• Wendling had her second straight double-double and third of the season, registering 17 points and a season-high 12 boards. She tied a career-high with three steals as well, adding a block and two assists.
• Coury hit on 3-of-4 shots from downtown, going for a career-best 11 points in the victory, adding a block.
• Nieman had a solid all-around game as well, adding eight points with five boards, two steals and a helper.
• Duffy chipped-in with seven boards and six points. 
• Saginaw Valley out-rebounded the Huskies by a 40-29 margin and posted a 32-22 edge in the paint.  

From Head Coach Jamie Pewinski

Up Next... 

SVSU remains atop the GLIAC North Division standings with its 8-1 league mark and 12-3 overall record. The Cardinals are at home once again on Thursday (Jan. 19) against Ferris State University. Tip-off for the game is set for 1:00 p.m. at O'Neill Arena.     

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