UNIVERSITY CENTER, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University women's basketball program honored military veterans on Saturday in their home game against the University of Findlay Oilers. The Cardinal starters were all accompanied by a military veteran during the starting lineup announcement before tip-off. SVSU fell to UF with a final score of 73-66.
The Cardinals had another balanced offense with Aleshia Jones leading the team with 13 points and Tyler Scheid and Victoria Stafford both scoring 11. Jones also had her first double-double as a Cardinal as she led the team with 10 rebounds. Megan McCalla was nearly in double digits with nine points and three rebounds.
It was a major back-and-forth game between the Cardinals and Oilers with 17 lead changes. SVSU started ahead with a three-pointer from Jones. UF took a two-point lead before buckets by McCalla and Stafford gave Saginaw Valley a 9-7 advantage. Both teams traded one possession leads in the first quarter as the Cardinals got scoring from Stafford, Scheid, and Jones. SVSU went ahead with a six-point lead with a Scheid layup at the end of the quarter. The Cardinals had their best shooting in the first quarter with a mark of 55.6 percent shooting 10-18.
In the second, the Oilers started with a 4-0 run to cut the lead to two. A layup from Makayla Mau and Jones and a Mau three-pointer pushed the lead to five for SVSU. Findlay responded with a 6-0 run to take the lead and then the teams traded layups and one-point leads down the stretch of the second quarter until a free throw for Findlay tied it at 38-38 heading into halftime.
A quick 5-0 run from a Lydia Meredith layup and a Scheid three-pointer had Saginaw Valley ahead early in the third quarter. Punches continued to be thrown by both teams as the Oilers chipped away and took a one-point lead halfway through the third quarter before two free throws and a layup for McCalla and an Emma Dziezgowski three gave SVSU the lead 52-48. The Cardinals closed out the quarter up 54-51.
Findlay knotted the game at 54-54 in the first minute of the final quarter and then both teams hit a scoring drought. The 54-54 score held for the next few minutes before the Oilers made a free throw. Lauren Sollom made a jump shot to give SVSU the lead, but it was erased as the battle raged on in O'Neill Arena. Findlay took a two-point lead before a Meredith three gave it back to Saginaw Valley. Then two buckets for the Oilers put them ahead 62-59. UF pushed their lead to six up 68-62 before a 4-0 run cut it to two coming off of two free throws by Stafford and a Jones layup. That was the last points for SVSU though as Findlay hit five of six free throws in the end to win 73-66.
Non-conference play continues for Saginaw Valley women's basketball as they host Ashland on Friday, November 11 at 6:00 PM. It is youth day at O'Neill Arena as the 2023-24 basketball season rolls on.
