PORTSMOUTH, Ohio – Senior Katie Allen scored a career-high 21 points and the Lady Tigers defeated Shawnee in Portsmouth for the first time in Ginger Colvin's head coaching experience, 80-75.
With Shawnee State not going away late in the game, Colvin looked to her bench for some leadership and a cheering section as the sparse crowd was mainly wearing navy and grey.
That spark came late in the second half, as Allen picked up her team for the second straight game off the bench, hitting two 3-point baskets and scoring eight straight points within the final five minutes.
"Last week I came out with a different starting lineup and that lit a fire under Katie," said Colvin. "She played like the Katie Allen of old and she stepped up once again when we needed a lift."
But before Allen could set off her fireworks late in the game, Shawnee State would not give in to the No. 8-ranked NAIA team.
Shawnee's Alannah Sheets came into the game as a two-time MSC Player of the Week. Sheets scored 45 points in State's previous game against rival Rio Grande. The Leon, W. Va. native hit the game's first bucket from behind the 3-point arch and Colvin was furious with how the Lady Tigers started the game and called a quick time out.
"I like to save my timeouts for later in the game, but that was the final thing we talked about in the locker room and Sheets came open early on. She is a great player, but we had to do a better job early on."
After the timeout, CU still struggled to get on its game and were down 14-6 with 14:52 left on the first-half clock. But the Lady Tigers came back with five points in a row and to just a one-point deficit on a layup by Mary Jehlik.
The Lady Tigers picked up their first lead, 18-17, off a steal by Kristen Jacob that led to an Allen 3-point basket.
The Lady Tigers extended their lead two trips back down the floor as Jehlik spotted up in the corner on back-to-back 3-pointers to kick-start CU to a 24-20 lead. Jehlik finished the first half with eight points on 3-for-5 shooting and a perfect 2-for-2 from behind the arch.
But Sheets kept hitting jumper after jumper to not allow Campbellsville to get out in front by too much. She finished the first half with 16 of Shawnee's 38 points.
After a turnover by Shawnee with 6:30 left in the first half LeeAnn Grider, who started her second consecutive game, rushed the ball back up the court and hit Daizah Kimberland on a lob pass over the defense. The basket was also the eighth point for Kimberland who was 4-for-6 from the field in the first 20 minutes.
Campbellsville ended up tying the game after missing two straight layups but the post players picked up two offensive rebounds and came up big once again. Burd kicked the ball out to a wide-open Angie Lawrence who hit a 3 to give CU a 40-37 lead at halftime.
"Our posts were the difference tonight as (Lindsey) Burd, Kimberland, Jehlik and Jacob all played big minutes. All four of them hit shots when the team needed it and Jacob picked up a few late rebounds that were key."
Sheets finished the scoring in the first half as she hit one-of-two free throws for the Bears and Campbellsville led 40-37 at the break.
The pesky Lady Bears would not go away and came back to take the lead on a missed 3-point basket. But Ali Zievernink was in the right place at the right time as the ball landed in her hands and she laid the ball in for her 10th and 11th points. It was the first lead since the 9:20 mark in the first half.
But the Lady Tigers would not let Shawnee keep the lead long as Jacob was fouled and hit two free throws to give CU the lead 55-53 with 10:07 left.
Campbellsville scored six straight on layups by Allen and Hayley Hellyer after Shawnee took its lead.
As Sheets scored more than half of State's points in the first half, The Lady Tigers held her to only 10 points in the second half with six of those coming in the final minute of the game when she took almost every shot.
But from the 10:31 mark to the 3:19 mark Shawnee went cold and did not hit a field goal. The Bears only points came on five free throws through that stretch.
With 5:27 left on the clock, Allen started to take over. With her eight straight points for CU the Lady Tigers led 65-58 and were able to hang on down the stretch.
Shawnee State had a chance in the final two minutes as Campbellsville only shot 8-for-17 from the free throw line in the final two minutes. But the Bears were too little too late and they could not overcome the hot streak by Allen.
The bench points was the difference. CU scored 47 bench points compared to only 11 for Shawnee.
Kimberland and Burd both finished with 13 points and Jehlik pitched in 10, as the Bears held her to only two second-half points.
With the win tonight, Colvin's teams moved to 4-7 against Shawnee State and they finally pulled out a win in Portsmouth. The Lady Tigers knotted the overall series 8-8 against the Bears. CU also has moved to 15-2 for the first time since the 2010-2011 season when it finished 30-4 and made a trip to the NAIA Quarterfinals.
Campbellsville will take a short trip to University of Rio Grande on Saturday for a matchup with the RedStorm. The game is set to tip at 2 p.m. and will be broadcasted live on WLCUFM.com and in Campbellsville WLCU 88.7 FM.
To follow Lady Tiger Basketball throughout the rest of the year, check them out on Twitter – @LTB_CU and @CvilleTigers. Also on Facebook – Campbellsville Women's Basketball and Campbellsville Tigers.
