Box Score ALMA, Mich. - The Calvin women's basketball team defeated Alma 69-62 in a first round MIAA Tournament game Monday night at the Art Smith Arena.
The Knights (5-5) move on to the MIAA Tournament semifinals Wednesday night where they will play Hope at 7:30 p.m. at DeVos Fieldhouse.
Alma (8-7) came ready to play as it jumped out to an early 12-7 lead with 4:32 left in the quarter. The Knights started to pick it up on the offensive and turned the game around quickly. They went on a 10-2 to end the quarter which was capped off by a made three pointers by junior Gabby Timmer (Caledonia, MI / South Christian). Calvin took a 17-14 lead into the 2nd quarter.
The Knights continued to attack the Scots on offense as they went on an 11-2 run to start the quarter. It was capped off by a tough layup from sophomore Leah Harris (Frisco, TX / Lone Star) and it gave them a 28-16 lead with 5:34 left in the half. The Scots bounced back with a run of their own as the closed out the half on a 12-7 run and trailed 35-30 heading into halftime.
Harris and Timmer both had 11 at the break and junior Stephanie Coors (Evergreen, Co / Valor Christian) had 7 points as well. Calvin shot 14 of 32 (43.8%) from the field and 2 of 8 (25%) from the three-point line. The Knights also had 7 steals and 6 assists going into halftime.
The Knights held a steady lead throughout the third quarter and extended it towards the end. They took a nine-point lead heading into the 4th quarter with a score of 50-41. Calvin was coasting in the early minutes of the fourth as Coors hit a three pointer to give them a 57-44 lead.
Alma battled back into the game over the next four minutes and pulled within one and Calvin only led 57-56 with four minutes left. Junior Kamryn Elgersma (Redlands, CA / Arrowhead Christian) hit a clutch three pointer to the Knights up 60-56 with 3:09 left. The Knights built on their lead and after five straight made free throws by Harris, Calvin hung on for the win.
Calvin was led in scoring by Leah Harris with 20 points and Stephanie Coors finished with 15 points and 6 rebounds. Gabby Timmer also had 15 points and 5 rebounds. They shot 26-62 (41.9%) from the field and 7-21 (33.3%). The Knights also shot 10-11 (90.9) from the free throw line and outrebound Alma 38-37.
COACHES COMMENT: "I thought our response tonight was awesome," said Calvin women's basketball head coach Mark Christner. "We showed poise and in moments where we lacked a little poise and gave up some points, we came back and responded. That's what tournament basketball is all about. We received contributions from all around and we handled situations that we haven't been in this year before tonight. I thought we were active defensively and in the half-court we did a good job of getting our hands on the ball."
UP NEXT: Calvin will head to play Hope on Wednesday night.
