Spartans Best Westminster (Mo.) 67-61, Post 2-0 Mark During Bishop Classic/Hoops for Hope Tourney
DELAWARE, Ohio – Senior guard Evy Iacono (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) tallied a team-high 17 points to lead a trio of scorers in double figures as the Case Western Reserve University women's basketball team defeated Westminster College (Mo.) by a score of 67-61 during the second and final day of the 2012 Bishop Classic/Hoops For Hope hosted by Ohio Wesleyan University inside Branch Rickey Arena.
The Spartans improve to 7-3 overall and will conclude the non-conference portion of their schedule this Wednesday, January 2 inside Horsburgh Gymnasium versus Heidelberg University at 6:00 p.m. With the loss, the Lady Blue Jays fall to 2-8.
Iacono was selected to the all-tournament team with 36 points scoring in the two games this weekend.
In addition, sophomore forward Brooke Orcutt (Morrison, Colo./Dakota Ridge) recorded a career-high 13 points to go along with four rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench, while senior center Emily Mueller (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair) totaled 10 points, five rebounds and a game-best three blocks.
With the score tied at 4-4 early in the first half, the Lady Blue Jays reeled off a 6-2 run and led 10-6 when Leigh Ann Lutz nailed a three-point field goal at the 14:53 mark. Over the next four minutes, Case slowly chipped away at the deficit and knotted the contest at 14-14 on a bucket from freshman forward Laura Mummey (Hudson, Ohio/Hudson) assisted by sophomore forward Berit Eppard (Englewood, Colo./Cherry Creek). However, Westminster answered with a quick 5-0 spurt over the ensuing 41 seconds making the score 19-14.
The Spartans' deficit then grew to five, 25-20, with 5:33 left before the break, but Case outscored Westminster by a 14-3 tally during the final minutes of the opening stanza and held a 34-28 edge at the break.
Out of the intermission, Case scored six of the first nine points and eventually gained a nine-point lead, 40-31, with 16:28 left on a jumper from senior forward Marissa Miles (McDonald, Pa./Fort Cherry). That lead grew to as many as 12, 55-43, when Orcutt knocked down a three with 9:30 showing on the clock, but the Lady Blue Jays were able to chip away with a 12-4 run over the next 6:45 to get within four, 59-55, following a charity toss by Hannah Kloster with 2:45 remaining. However, the Spartans knocked down 8-of-10 free throws down the stretch and secured the six-point non-conference victory.
Westminster was paced by Lutz, an all-tourney honoree, with a game-high 28 points.
Following Wednesday's game with Heidelberg, the Spartans will begin University Athletic Association play next Saturday, Jan. 5 when they travel to Pittsburgh to take on Carnegie Mellon University (Pa.) inside Skibo Gymnasium at 3:00 p.m.
