FRANKFORT, Ky. - Campbellsville reeled off a 19-6 run midway through the first half to gain separation, and went on to earn a berth in the championship game of the Mid-South Tournament, beating Rio Grande 94-71.



But it didn't come that easy. Rio rallied from a 9-2 deficit to lead 17-15 early in the game. Alexia Williams canned a 3 and Mackenzie Lee hit two free throws and the Lady Tigers never trailed again. But the Lady Red Storm (19-13) cut it to seven in the second half.

"It didn't seem like a 23-point game," said coach Ginger Colvin. "They hung around for the longest time, seems like.

"We let them stay in the game," said Colvin. "I thought there were four of five opportunities in the first half when we could have really made it comfortable. We'd come down and make a silly shot or a silly turnover."

Rio's waterbug point guard, Bre Davis, picked up her third personal at the 7:49 mark of the opening half, but still logged 18 first-half minutes. As a matter of fact, Rio as a team played in foul trouble most of the game, losing two players and two others finishing the game with four personals.

But CU (27-3) had it's own foul trouble to deal with. Lee was in foul trouble too, playing only 20 minutes.

"It was a team win, for sure." said Colvin. "T.J. (Thomas) came in and showed senior leadership - running the offense and hitting a big 3 in the first half. If I had a game ball to give her, I would."

Whitney Ballinger, who had a double-double at intermission, finished with 24 points and 17 rebounds. She was joined in double figures by Courtney Danis, who is four made free throws away from putting her name in the Lady Tiger record book for that statistic.

Campbellsville was dominant on the boards, hammering Rio 52-22 on the glass. Corin Dunn had seven points and four boards, Isaacs nine points and four rebounds, and Lee, in limited action, nine points and four caroms.

Campbellsville shot 54 percent for the floor and hit 8 of it 17 3-pointers. They were 70 percent from the free throw line.

Rio Grande (71) - Davis 6-17 4-4 17, Smith 11-11 7-8 10, Hammond 4-8 0-0 9, Shaw 2-2 0-0 4, Kendro 2-6 2-2 6, Helton 5-12 7-8 17, Saunders 2-6 0-0 5, Delong 1-1 0-0 3. Totals 23-65 20-24 71.
Lady Tigers (94) - Ballinger 8-18 7-11 24, Danis 4-10 4-6 13, Isaacs 4-5 1-1 9, Lee 3-5 2-2 9, Clifton 2-5 0-0 6, Compton 1-1 0-0 2, Williams 2-2 0-0 5, Thomas 1-1 2-2 5, Deason 2-2 0-0 4, Dunn 1-2 5-6 7, Allen 1-2 0-0 2, Hellyer 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 32-59 17-22 94.
Half-time - Campbellsville 48-36.
Three-point goals - Rio Grande 5-19, Campbellsville 8-17 (Danis 1, Ballinger 1, Lee 1, Clifton 2, Thomas 1, Williams 1).
Rebounds - Rio Grande 22, Campbellsville 53 (Ballinger 17, Thomas 7).
Assists - Rio Grande 9, Campbellsville 19 (Danis 3, Ballinger 3, Isaacs 3, Lee 3, Thomas 2).
Steals - Rio Grande 7, Campbellsville 7 (Danis 2, Ballinger 3).
Blocked shots - Rio Grande 1; Campbellsville 4 (Ballinger 4).