The women's basketball team was on the road again for a Monday evening showdown with Trinity Baptist College in Jacksonville, Florida. They played their third straight road game to start the season and will be coming home with a win over the Eagles 78-72.
"Today was a good road win for us where the ladies had to dig deep to play their third game in four days on the road," said Head Coach Mike LeViere. "It was a very physical game that forced us to fight through contact and eventually we did a really good job of that."
Coming into this matchup, the women's basketball team split their two games in Kissimmee, Florida where they lost to the Welch College Flames and beat the Johnson University FL Suns. Friday, the Bruins met the Flames for a 6:00 p.m. matchup where they were burned 68-63. Heading into Saturday, the Bruins then played South Region rival, Johnson University FL, defeating them 73-43.
Trinity Baptist College resides in Jacksonville, Florida and is also a Division II South Region opponent. The Eagles and Bruins have met 19 times before their Monday night showdown. With tonight's win, the Bruins have won the last six straight which would add to their 16-3 all-time series record making it 17-3. The most recent matchup between the Bruins and Eagles ended in a nailbiter as the Bruins squeaked out a 60-59 win on the Eagles home court.
Tonight, the Bruins were able to take the first points and never turn over the lead. Bria Dickinson got the scoring started for the Bruins with a layup and about a minute later put a three-point shot on the board. A hot start through the whole first quarter found the Bruins up 23-14 to end the first quarter. The hot hands wouldn't stop for Bria Dickinson as she continued scoring on the Eagles. Shea Dickinson and Anna Layne-Wylder both added to stats with a couple of three-point shots of their own to finish out the half up 35-30.
Ainsley Hutton got the scoring started in the second half with a layup. The Eagles tried to keep it close, but the Bruins would have an answer to not lose their lead. Through most of the third quarter, it would be a four or five point game, but as the quarter kept ticking towards the end, the Bruins pulled away to make it an 11-point game. Through the first half of the final quarter, the Bruins maintained their lead, but that lead started to diminish. The Eagles were slowly creeping back getting it to a two-point game with two minutes to play. Through a series of timeouts and free-throws, the Bruins kept their cool and finished the final two minutes escaping the late scare.
"We were massively out rebounded and gave up a lot of second chances points, but for the most part we took good shots and kept our composure." Coach LeViere finished by saying, "I am proud of our team for their composure and staying disciplined."
Up next, the Bruins will be at home this Thursday for a game against Trinity College (Fla). The Bruins and Eagles are scheduled to tip-off at 5:00 p.m.Â
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