MCKENZIE, Tenn.– The #4 Lady Tiger Basketball took on the Bethel University Wildcats Thursday night. Campbellsville improved to 16-1 with a 71-57 over Bethel holding the Wildcats to less-than-stellar shooting.
Campbellsville pushed ahead of Bethel with two buckets provided by Courtney Pritchett. Following Pritchett, the Lady Tigers struggled to shoot from the arc, which allowed the Wildcats to regain the lead. Campbellsville strung together a couple of layups but trailed Bethel 10-8 entering the second quarter.
Entering the second quarter, Kaitlynn Wilks evened the score with a critical layup. Wilks increased the intensity as she led an eight-point run. Lauren Lee earned the Lady Tigers a five-point lead over the Wildcats. Bethel continued to knock down Campbellsville's lead but could not recuperate the upper hand. Within the last minute of the half, Bailey Pedigo sank a layup and a three-point basket to propel Campbellsville's lead to eight.
Campbellsville reigned in 41.4% in field goals at the half, whereas the Wildcats concluded with 32.3%. Although Bethel had acquired more offensive rebounds than the Lady Tigers (10-6), Campbellsville had tallied more second-chance points with ten versus the Wildcats' four. Wilks led her team with 10 points and two rebounds. Pedigo followed closely with seven points and three rebounds.
Pedigo remained consistent into the second half as her opening layup pushed the Lady Tiger lead to double digits. Bethel struggled to hit their shots from deep, which allowed Campbellsville to bust open their lead. The Lady Tigers forced the Wildcats into 12 turnovers by the end of the third quarter, which they had exchanged for ten of their points. Kayla Luebbe stepped up to the free throw line with 15 seconds remaining in the quarter and collected both shots from the stripe, 50-37.
The Lady Tigers were scoreless in the final quarter until Maddy Boyle drained a three-pointer. The Wildcats had amassed a 36.8% in field goals that ensured they just couldn't muster the offense to catch Campbellsville, who were shooting 47.2%. Both teams traded buckets back and forth; however, the Lady Tigers broke the repetition by collecting an additional three-point basket from Elizabeth Bertram. Moments later, Sarah Sutton's three-pointer rang true and tied the Lady Tigers' largest lead of the competition. Bethel never recovered from their discrepancy and dropped the match 71-57 to Campbellsville.
The game simply came down to the quality of shots and the Lady Tigers' defense was consistently closing out and shrinking the floor. The Wildcats shot a paltry 4-25 from the three-point line, a testament to the active hands and bodies of Campbellsville. The Lady Tigers weren't settling for tough looks on the other side either. Wilks finished the night with 16 points and three rebounds. Pedigo trailed with 15 points and five rebounds.
The Lady Tigers will remain in Tennessee as they take on Freed-Hardeman University Saturday, January 14th. The Mid-South Conference match-up will tip-off at 2 p.m. ET.
