Women's Basketball Hampered by Cold Shooting at Kansas Wesleyan

SALINA, Kan. (macbulldogs.com) --- The McPherson College women's basketball team was held scoreless in the first quarter and was unable to make up a 25-0 deficit as Kansas Wesleyan University posted a 64-33 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) win Saturday night at Mabee Arena.

The Bulldogs (5-2, 1-1 KCAC) struggled out of the gate, going 0-for-8 from the field and 0-for-6 at the free-throw line in the first quarter as the Coyotes (4-4, 1-1 KCAC) built a 23-0 lead after one quarter. KWU was 8-of-19 from the field, hit all five free throws, and held a 15-5 advantage on the boards.

Brylee New added a pair of free throws in the opening seconds of the second quarter to extend the advantage to 25-0 before Emma Van Donselaar (Shawnee, Kan., Shawnee Mission West HS) hit a contested jumper in the lane, was fouled, and drained the ensuing the free throw to finally get the Bulldogs on the board with 9:12 left in the half. McPherson was limited to just three more points in the half, all on free throws -- two by Van Donselaar and one by Brooke Zimmerman (Aurora, Colo., Western Nebraska CC), as Kansas Wesleyan took a 34-6 lead into the break.

The Bulldogs won the third quarter, 16-11, to cut the deficit to 23 points. McPherson scored eight straight points during one stretch behind four free throws from Van Donselaar, slicing the KWU lead from 30 to 22. The Coyotes responded with four points in a row, but Amanda Allen (Edmond, Okla., Edmond Santa Fe HS) drained a 3-pointer to close out the quarter.

Brooklyn Coe (Corvallis, Ore., Chemeketa CC) opened the fourth quarter with a jumper to make it a 21-point game with 9:44 to play, but the Bulldogs could get no closer. The Coyotes rattled off 14 of the next 16 points over the next 6:11, capped by a 3-pointer by New, to build the lead to 33 points at 59-26. The teams traded baskets before Kristina Battle (Houston, Texas, Austin HS) hit a three of her own to cut the deficit to 30 points with 2:11 to play. KWU's Sydney Mortensen countered with a trey inside the final minute before Coe set the final margin after hitting a basket with 21 seconds remaining.

After shooting just 1-for-19 in the first half, the Bulldogs shot 9-for-26 in the second half to finish the game at 22.2 percent from the field. KWU didn't fare much better overall, shooting just 36.4 percent (20-of-55) from the field.

Van Donselaar led the Bulldogs with nine points, behind 7-of-9 shooting at the line. Coe and Allen added seven points apiece. Cami Richardson (Hesston, Kan., Hesston HS), who had entered the game averaging 10.3 points and 9.5 rebounds, was kept out of the scoring column but did pull down a team-high seven rebounds. Danielle Holt (Glenpool, Okla., Glenpool HS) was limited to two points and a team-high eight rebounds before fouling out with 7:10 to play.

Three Coyotes - Karlie Steinle (13), New (12) and Mortensen (10) - finished in double figures, while Jenna Farris finished just shy of a double-double with nine points and eight rebounds.

The Bulldogs will look to rebound Tuesday evening when Oklahoma Wesleyan University (5-3, 1-1 KCAC), which was receiving votes in the NAIA Preseason Coaches Poll, pays a visit to the Sport Center. Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m.