GRAND RAPIDS - The Calvin University women's basketball team closed a strong first semester with a 71-55 win over Cornerstone University at Van Noord Arena on Tuesday. 

Calvin (8-2) brought great energy on the defensive end to start the game, swarming the Golden Eagles' offense on the way to a 10-1 run to start the game. 

Cornerstone (6-6) cut their deficit to seven (23-16) after one quarter, but the Knights pushed the lead to 17 with a 14-4 run to open the second period on the way to a 42-27 halftime lead.

Sydney Cleary (Middleville, Mich./South Christian) paced the Knights with 10 points in the first half, while Ryann Rohrer (Ludington, Mich./Ludington) and Claire Cassiday (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) combined for 13 points off the bench.

Defense continued to carry the Knights into the second half, where the Golden Eagles shot 12.5 percent in the third quarter and 26.7 percent for the half. Cornerstone was able to cut the Calvin lead into single digits midway through the third quarter, but the Knights pushed it back as high as 18 points early in the fourth quarter on the way to the win.

The Calvin defense held Cornerstone to just 24.2 percent shooting overall and 21.1 percent from beyond the three-point arc for the game, while the offense dominated the Golden Eagles down low with 38 points in the paint. 

Gabby Timmer (Caledonia, Mich./South Christian) and Cleary each finished with a team-high 17 points, and Timmer also added 15 rebounds and five blocks. Rohrer finished with a career-high 12 points off the bench, while Sara Nealy (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Valor Christian) scored 11 points.

COACH'S COMMENT: I thought we had great energy to start," Calvin head women's basketball coach Mark Christner said. "The first half was as good as we've played in a little while. Cornerstone has played well of late and we knew offensively they were pretty dangerous. I thought we closed space down for them. I thought we established how we wanted to play, and that kind of propelled us into the second half. Overall, a really nice performance for us and an end to a really solid first semester."

You can hear more from coach Christner after the game if you click on the video below:



NEXT UP: Calvin women's basketball returns to action on Thursday, December 29, when it travels to Loras for the start of a two-day tournament.