Huskies Sweep Weekend with Win Over Walsh on Saturday
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Walsh (3-3, 0-2 GLIAC) | 21 | 47 | 68 |
|
Michigan Tech (3-2, 2-0 GLIAC) | 42 | 41 | 83 |
HOUGHTON, Mich. – The Michigan Tech women's basketball team swept the first weekend of GLIAC play, defeating Walsh 83-68 on Saturday (Dec. 7) at the SDC Gym. The Huskies buried 10 3-pointers and led by as many as 30 early in the second half to move to 3-2 overall and 2-0 in the GLIAC.
"We're really happy to get two good wins to open conference play," Tech coach Kim Cameron said. "For three halves this weekend we had phenomenal defense. It's something we've been emphasizing and working on every day."
The Huskies held the Cavaliers to 21 points in the first half and had four players score in double figures led by Mackenzie Perttu's 16 points. Paige Albi added 13 and Kerry Gardner and Danielle Blake scored a dozen each. Nine players entered into the scoring column for the Black and Gold.
Tech scored the first eight points of the second half to take a commanding 51-21 lead. Later in the half, Walsh (3-3, 0-2 GLIAC) cut into Tech's lead with a 17-7 run, making the margin 12 with 2:37 left. Albi and Blake made layups and Perttu buried a pair of free throws to seal the win.
Tech scored 14 straight points in a span of seven minutes of the first half to take a 35-16 lead with 3:27 left. The Huskies doubled up the Cavs 42-21 in the first half after draining seven 3-pointers. Albi and Perttu each had nine points in the opening half.
"We were moving the basketball really well in the first half to find the open person and take the correct shots," Cameron added. "In the second half, we turned the ball over too much and were taking threes when we should've been going inside. We have great shooters and we'll continue to find the correct balance of inside and out."
The Huskies shot 49 percent (27-of-55) from the floor and made 10-of-23 (44 percent) from beyond the arc and 19-of-25 (76 percent) from the free throw line. The home team dominated in the rebounding category, 45-29.
Kelcey Traynoff chipped in with nine points on three made treys. Jillian Ritchie, Blake and Albi all had four assists, while Gardner had seven rebounds and three assists in 36 minutes of action.
Walsh made 36 percent of its shots from the floor, including 8-of-14 (57 percent) from the 3-point line. Kelsey Funderburgh scored a game-high 29 points. Theresa Jackson was also in double figures for the Cavs with 14 points.
The Huskies head on the road next weekend for the first GLIAC road trip of the season. Tech plays at Findlay (Dec. 12) on Thursday and Hillsdale on Saturday (Dec. 14).