AVE MARIA, Fla. — The #3 Lady Tigers continued their holiday play in Florida against the Ave Maria University Gyrenes Sunday afternoon. With four players in double digits, including a career-high 24 for
Maddy Boyle, Campbellsville defeated Ave Maria 101-70.
The Lady Tigers opened the first quarter with an eight-point run, quickly reaching a ten-point lead as the Gyrenes struggled to convert. Both teams' defenses heightened with five minutes left on the clock, keeping the game low-scoring for the remainder opening quarter.
Kayla Luebbe came off the bench with back-to-back layups, breaking the scoring halt on the game. Campbellsville led the game at the end of the first quarter, 21-10.
Ave Maria began the second quarter at the free-throw line. The Lady Tigers followed with a 14-point deluge consisting of multiple three-pointers from Boyle and
Courtney Pritchett and a layup by
Whitney Hay. Although the Gyrenes interrupted Campbellsville's run as they made it back to the charity stripe, Boyle quickly struck back with her fifth three-point bucket of the contest. Ave Maria's fouls provided multiple Lady Tigers with opportunities at the free-throw line, growing Campbellsville's lead to a 28-point advantage. At the end of the first half, the Gyrenes still trail the Lady Tigers, 54-26.
At the half, Campbellsville's plays proved superior over Ave Maria, collecting ten steals to their one and 11 assists to their five. The Lady Tigers also nearly doubled the Gyrenes with 44.8% (13-of-29) to their 24.1% (7-of-29) field goal percentage and 60% (6-of-10) to their 33.3% (3-of-9) three-point percentage. Boyle, at that point, had already set her career-high for three's in a half with her five.
In the opening seconds of the second half,
Lauren Lee collected her third steal of the game, resulting in Boyle scoring another layup for Campbellsville. Lee continued to rack up more assists, aiding Pritchett and Boyle with buckets for the Lady Tigers. Both teams intensified their rebounds, stopping each other's chances at the basket. With less than four minutes left in the third quarter, Campbellsville and Ave Maria went back and forth, scoring and quickly taking the ball from one end to the other. Going into the last quarter, the Lady Tigers remained ahead, 72-41.
The first few minutes of the fourth quarter kept the scoreboard stagnant, with neither team scoring, until the Gyrenes landed a jumper two minutes in. Shortly after, Pritchett retaliated with her second three-pointer of the game. A few Campbellsville fouls brought Ave Maria to the free-throw line, decreasing the Gyrenes' deficit.
Tyra Flowers,
Rachel Presley, and
Paige Serafini came off the bench with more buckets from Campbellsville, counteracting Ave Maria's collected free-throw points.
Paige Evans closed the game at the charity stripe, bringing Campbellsville to triple digits, 101-70.
Although the Gyrenes retaliated during the development of the fourth quarter, it was still not enough to catch up with the Lady Tigers. Both teams kept well-rotated lineups, collecting 53 (Campbellsville) and 44 (Ave Maria) bench points each. Boyle registered multiple new records, two new career-highs with 24 points and six three-pointers, and one new season-high with five rebounds. Five Lady Tigers reached double digits during the contest: Boyle with 24 points, Bertram and Luebbe with 13, Pritchett with 12, and Flowers with ten.
The Lady Tigers will be back in action, traveling to San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Tuesday, December 19th, to battle the University of Puerto Rico-Bayamon Cowgirls.
