Leisemann's Double-Double Leads WLC To Wire-To-Wire Win

MILWAUKEE (WLCSports.com) – Sophomore Sam Leisemann (Fall River, Wis.) scored a career-high 21 points and grabbed 14 rebounds to lead the Wisconsin Lutheran College women's basketball team to a 69-66 wire-to-wire win over Washington-St. Louis on Saturday afternoon inside the Recreation Complex. The win moved the Warriors to 2-0 for the second straight season after weekend wins at the Paul F. Knueppel Classic.

• Final Score: Wisconsin Lutheran 69, Washington-St. Louis 66
• Records: Wisconsin Lutheran (2-0), Washington-St. Louis (0-2)
• Location: Recreation Complex, Milwaukee, Wis.

• The Warriors jumped out to a 9-1 first-quarter lead over the Bears with 5:30 left in the opening quarter on a layup from senior Jenna Mace (Wisconsin Dells, Wis.), forcing WashU to call its first timeout.
• WLC maintained an eight-point lead at 15-7 before the Bears closed to within four points at 18-14 at the end of the first quarter.
• Wisconsin Lutheran took a seven-point lead over WashU in the first minute of the second quarter following a three from senior Ally Gough (Horicon, Wis.). The Bears trimmed their deficit to just two points at 25-23, but back-to-back triples from Mace and senior Kalies Birkholz (Watertown, Wis.) propelled the hosts' lead back up to eight points. The Green and White went into the locker room at halftime with a 35-28 lead.
• WashU netted the first five points of the third quarter to trail by just two points at 35-33. Holding onto a one-point lead at 39-38, the Warriors went on a 12-3 scoring run capped off by a Mace layup for a 10-point lead at 51-41. WLC carried a 51-42 lead into the final quarter. 
• Wisconsin Lutheran took a game-high 11-point lead with 8:39 left in the fourth quarter before the Bears scored six straight points.
• WashU cut a 10-point deficit with 1:43 remaining down to just a point with 0:06 seconds left. Two free throws from Birkholz gave the Green and White a three-point lead with three ticks on the clock and the Bears' game-tying three-pointer missed at the buzzer for the 69-66 win.
• Leisemann led three players in double figures with a game- and career-high 21 points. She also grabbed 14 rebounds and blocked three shots for her first double-double of the season.
• Mace finished with 19 points and Birkholz added 15 to round out the double-digit scorers for WLC.
• Wisconsin Lutheran overcame a 37.7 percent (26-for-69) shooting performance and 43.5 percent (10-for-23) from the charity stripe.
• The Warriors out-scored WashU 20-10 in points off turnovers and 34-22 on points in the paint.

• The Warriors start a stretch of five straight road games on Wednesday when they travel to Carthage (2-2) for a 7 p.m. non-conference game. Live coverage links will be available for the contest at WLCSports.com. 

We finish out the Paul F. Knueppel Classic with a 69-66 win over a very tough WashU team. Sam Leisemann with a game high 21 points, 14 rebound performance to cap off the weekend. #WeAreWarriors��⚔️ pic.twitter.com/TxHvWt6K1T

— WLC W. Basketball (@WLC_WBB) November 14, 2021

Day 2 of the Paul F. Knueppel Classic. Let's finish the weekend on a high note!
��GAMEDAY��
��: Wash U (MO)
��️: Nov. 13th, 2021
��: Time of Grace Center (WLC)
⏰: 3:00 p.m.#WeAreWarriors��⚔️ pic.twitter.com/Pf6sHiWCPk

— WLC W. Basketball (@WLC_WBB) November 13, 2021

WBB: @WLC_WBB is back in action this afternoon hosting WashU in the Paul F. Knueppel Classic.

��: WashU
��: Nov. 13, 2021
��: Time of Grace Center
⏰: 3 p.m.
��: https://t.co/GbuLckvfqq
��: https://t.co/0KwClertum
��: https://t.co/xNPMGrRBuz#d3hoops pic.twitter.com/mQwEI1CmPh

— WLC Warriors (@WLCSports) November 13, 2021