River Forest, Ill. -- Looking to bounce back after three straight losses, the Concordia University Chicago Women's Basketball team did so in their home opener tonight. The Cougars used a big 23-5 run between the end of the third and beginning of the fourth quarter to pull away 46-35.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE:
- Deja Southall led the team with nine points and ten rebounds in 25 minutes.
- Jada Dixon had three blocks and three steals on the night.
- CUC forced 23 Marian turnovers which created 19 points.
- CUC held Marian to 20.6 percent shooting, the lowest they have held an opponent since 2016,
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In the first quarter, scoring was slow for both teams, Marian held the lead early, but
Michaela Thornton gave CUC the lead at 6-5 midway through the first quarter. CUC was able to gain a little momentum late in the quarter, getting a layup by
Bethany Hoehne and a backdoor layup from Southall to take an 11-8 lead after one.
Marian opened the second quarter with an 8-0 run to build their largest lead of the day at 18-11. The Cougars then began a run of their own by knocking down free-throws and turning up the intensity on defense. A layup by Southall gave CUC the lead back with 2:25 remaining in the quarter. A
Maddie Vojacek layup off an
Ashley Measel steal allowed CUC to keep a 21-20 lead at the half.
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The Sabres opened the second half with another quick run to take the lead back.
Jada Dixon put an end to the short run with a three off the left wing. A
Crystal Corr layup off a Southall steal kept the Cougar run going. A pair of
Annika Rae free throws built the CUC lead out to ten. Marian countered with a late basket to cut the lead to 35-27 after three.
CUC continued to up the pressure in the fourth, with Rae scoring the first five points of the quarter. The Cougars built their lead out to 14 on a Corr layup and were able to put the finishing touches on from there, sweeping the season series with Marian with a 46-35 win.
The Cougars will be back in action on Tuesday night as they host Concordia University Wisconsin. Opening tip is set for 7:15pm.
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