Box Score
Two free throws by Kylee Leffew with just seconds remaining gave the Lady Bruins a 72-70 win over Johnson University on Saturday afternoon in the Davis Field House. The win is the fourth in a row for the team as the Bruins moved their record to 10-12 on the season.
"We fought hard," Bruins Head Coach Mike LeViere said. "We had to to overcome a few things with having some girls out.vWe did enough of the little things to pull out the victory."
Sydney Bedsaul hit two threes as the Lady Bruins opened the first quarter with a 10-5 lead. The Royals answered with a 6-0 run to take a small 11-10 lead but it wouldn't last long as the Bruins responded with a pair of three by Madison Shupe and Kylee Leffew put the Lady Bruins up 18-11 and on an 8-0 run. The Royals scored twice to cut the Lady Bruins' lead down to 20-15, but Leffew scored in the closing seconds of the quarter to give the Lady Bruins a 22-15 advantage as the first quarter came to a close.
The second quarter opened up with Bedsaul making her third three of the game. The three put the Bruins up by double digits at 25-15. After sinking her fourth consecutive three, Bedsaul was able to keep the Bruins up by 10 at 29-19. The Royals went on a small 5-0 run to cut the Lady Bruins' lead to 29-24. A free throw and another Royals bucket put Johnson University in striking distance at 31-24. Sha'Ron Brunson scored to extend the Bruins' slight lead to 33-27 but the Royals closed the gap as the half ended with the Bruins up 36-34.
The Lady Bruins entered the second half hoping to build a bigger lead against the Royals. However, the Johnson University came out strong as they opened up the third quarter with a 10-0 run. The run put the Royals up 44-36, which was their first lead since the middle of the first quarter. The Bruins were held scoreless for the first half of the third quarter, but the scoring drought ended when Bedsaul made her fifth consecutive three. Leffew scored a layup and then was fouled on the ensuing possession as she helped cut the lead the Royals' lead to 44-43. Thomsen scored which put the Lady Bruins up 47-44 and on as the Bruins capped an 11-0 run to retake the lead. Rachel Clark sunk a pair of threes to keep the Lady Bruins ahead at 53-48 and the Bruins closed out the quarter strong as they took a 61-52 lead into the final frame.
The Royals scored to open up the fourth quarter and Bedsaul responded with another three to keep the Lady Bruins up by 10 at 64-54. Johnson University was able to go on a 7-0 run to cut the Lady Bruins' lead down to only three at 64-61. After the two teams traded baskets, the Royals answered with five straight points to take a 68-67 lead late in the game. Rachel Clark had several big plays for the Bruins as she extended possessions down the stretch and made three free throws to put the Bruins up 70-68. The Royals responded with free throws of their own to tie the game 70-70.
With just 23 seconds remaining, the Lady Bruins had one more possession to go for the win. Kylee Leffew beat her defender off the dribble and was fouled on the way to the basket with just 8 seconds left to play. Leffew hit both free throws to give the Lady Bruins a 72-70 lead and the last-second shot missed for the Royals as the Bruins held on for the win.
"Free throws have always been a struggle for me so for me to actually make two free throws at the end of the game when it was important is exciting," Leffew said as she finished with 13 points and 4 rebounds.
Sydney Besaul led the team in points with 20, while Sarah Thomsen and Rachel Clark led the Lady Bruins with 4 assists apiece. Bedsaul also led the team in three point shooting, making six threes during the game.
"We got a lot of experience today and we got some yesterday," Coach LeViere said. "We're going to need all the experience we can as we head into a tough part of the season but we're getting better each and every day and that's our focus."
Next up, the Lady Bruins will be on the road Tuesday night as they battle Warren Wilson College in Asheville, North Carolina.
