Box Score
Just when the Bruins needed a hero, Maggi Ford pulled out some clutch 2nd half shooting to help the Lady Bruins punch their ticket to the NCCAA DI South regional championship game as the team came from behind for a 63-55 overtime win over Columbia International University.

"I am extremely proud of our team tonight," Coach Mike LeViere said. "They didnt' give up and they continued to work hard. This was a gritty win for us and in the 3rd year of our program, I'm proud we get to play for the region championship. It says a lot about the work our team has put in."

 

The two teams met at Southern Wesleyan University for the semifinal game. The Bruins and Rams had met twice this season with the Bruins narrowly coming away with a victory in each game.

From the opening tip, the Rams looked to pull the upset as CIU jumped out to an early 10-2 lead. Abby Conover provided a spark for the Bruins off the bench by knocking down a three-point shot but the Bruins were just 4-20 from beyond the arc in the 1st half and shot just 16% from the field.

The team was able to compensate for their offensive struggles by controlling the rebounding margin and continuing to play good defense. Julia Wright cut the lead back down to 18-16, after converting a three-point shot. From there, the Rams closed out the half on an 8-2 run to go into the break up 26-18 over BJU.

"We told the team at the half to keep attacking the rim for points," Coach LeViere said. "Too many times in the first half we settled for shots and took contested shots. CIU was playing really well and really gave us trouble offensively. We told the team to keep shooting and we were confident the shots would start to fall and get us back into the game."

In the second half, the Rams looked to finish off the Bruins but Maggi Ford and Kendra Jeffcott refused to let that happen as the team slowly began to edge closer and closer to regaining the lead. With each run, the Rams would knock down a key basket to keep their lead.

With 3 minutes remaining, Maggi Ford knocked down a three-point shot to tie the game at 45-45. Ford came up strong again with another three on the next possession to give the Bruins the lead. The Rams refused to quit and continued to keep the game close.

After a free throw by Raven Fleming, the Rams had tied the game at 50-50. On the next possession, Kendra Jeffcott was fouled and converted both free throws to give the Bruins a 52-50 lead with just 8 seconds remaining. The Bruins looked to come away with the victory in regulation, but an incredible shot by Ciara Boggs tied the game at 52-52 to send the teams into overtime.

Maggi Ford took over for the Bruins as the OT period began as she knocked down back to back three's to help the Bruins build a double digit lead. The team was able to play solid defense and capitalize on their free throw opportunities to complete the comeback and move on to the regional championship game with a 63-55 win.

"Our improvement from year one until now has been dramatic," Coach LeViere said. "This is our second straight year to pick up a regional tournament win and now we have the opportunity to play for a championship tomorrow. I am happy for our team. We shot the ball well in the second half and were much smarter with each possession. Rebounding again was key for us tonight and defensively we made stops when we needed to most. I am really proud of this team win for us tonight.
Maggi Ford led the Bruins with 19 points while Kourtney Hoelfer scored 12 and Kendra Jeffcott recorded a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds. The Bruins were able to win the rebounding margin 50-35 while forcing CIU into 18 turnovers. With the win, the Bruins move onto the regional championship game tomorrow evening at Southern Wesleyan University. The team will play #4 Southern Wesleyan University who upset #1 Emmanuel College this evening. 

The game will be at 6 p.m.