UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. -- The Saginaw Valley State University women's basketball team fell 68-62 in a close GLIAC match-up with the Wayne State Warriors. The Cardinals fall to 12-15 overall and 8-11 in GLIAC play. Tori DePerry had a big game for the Cardinals scoring a career high 23 points and a team high of eight rebounds but it was not enough to overcome the Warriors.
The Cardinals opened the first quarter of play keeping the scoring close as the game was knotted 11-11 with two minutes remaining in the first quarter of play. Wayne State would end the first quarter going on a 7-0 score streak against the Cardinals taking a 18-11 lead. Kendall Spires came off the bench and scored all four of her points in the opening quarter for the Cardinals.
Wayne State maintained the momentum built in the first quarter and took a 10-point lead over the Cardinals in the second quarter of play. The Cardinals fought to get back into the game but was held to just 11 points in the second quarter. SVSU ended the first half of play down 36-24 to the visiting Warriors.
Saginaw Valley started their comeback in the third quarter of play scoring 23 points to the Warriors 18. DePerry scored 8 of her 23 points in the third quarter shooting 100% from the floor as the Cardinals ended the third quarter down seven points to the Warriors.
The Cardinals came within five points of the Warriors in the fourth quarter of play as Kaitlyn Zarycki grabbed an offensive board and fed DePerry for the closing basket. DePerry scored an additional eight points for SVSU in the fourth quarter but it wasn't enough for the Cardinals to pull off a win as SVSU fell 68-62 to the Warriors.
Inside the Boxscore
- DePerry scored a career high 23 points in the loss and added a team high eight boards, four assists, and a steal and block. She was named the Meijer "Player of the Game."
- Maddie Maloney was also in double digit scoring with 14 points and had two boards for the Cardinals.
- Maddie Barrie added 9 points for the Cardinals with a pair of boards and steals.
From Head Coach Jenny Pruett
"We did not come out with the intensity we needed to in order to win this game. This was a must win game for Wayne State and they played like it. They out hustled us and wanted it a little more than we did this afternoon. I'm proud of our fight to stay in the game, but when it came down the stretch they played harder than we did. We will refocus and be ready for a tough match-up against a very competitive Northwood team."
Up Next...
SVSU is on the road again Thursday (Feb. 27) in another GLIAC match-up against Northwood University with tip-off set for 6:00 p.m. in the James E. O'Neill Jr. Arena. Saginaw Valley is currently tied for seventh with Michigan Tech in the league standings with one game to play.
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