Washington’s Double-Double Helps Win Over Griffins 

1/3/2013 
Athletic News - Basketball(W) 

The Westminster Lady Blue Jays let their lead slip in the final minutes of the game, but went on a 9-0 run in overtime to overtake the Fontbonne Griffins 72-62.

The Griffins took an early 2 point lead in the game, but three minutes in, the Blue Jays went on a 7-0 run to take the lead for the rest of the game. The Blue Jays slowly increased the lead, and a shot by Talisha Washington put the Blue Jays up by 19 with 1:11 left in the first half.  Heading into halftime, the Blue Jays were up 38-21.

The Blue Jays kept a strong lead coming into the second half, and a jumper by Kenna Cornelson put them up by 20 with 14:44 left on the clock. A foul by the Blue Jays changed the pace of the game, and the Griffins slowly chipped away at the Blue Jays’ lead. With 5:59 left in the game, the Griffins managed to come within four points. With 1:10 left on the clock, the Blue Jays were up by 1 (60-59).  A Blue Jay foul with 0:06 left gave the Griffins a chance to win the game, but Griffin’s guard Hillary Johnson missed her second and third free throw, tying the game, 60-60. 

The Blue Jays did not get another chance to shoot, sending the game into five minutes of overtime.  The Blue Jays changed the pace of the game, grabbing a 9-0 run and leaving 00:39 on the clock. The Blue Jays let the Griffins score once, but then went 3-4 on free throws to win the game 72-62.

The Blue Jays shot 41% from the field.  Washington led the game with a double-double, 15 points and 11 rebounds.  Laci Luff came just short of having a double-double, grabbing 10 rebounds but scoring 9 points.  Washington also grabbed 5 steals, and followed by Cornelson with 4 steals.

The win increases the Blue Jays’ SLIAC record to 2-0, and brings their overall record to 3-8.

After a long away period, the Blue Jays finally come home to take on conference matchup Spalding University on Saturday, January 5th at 1:00 p.m.