Warriors Coast Past Muskies In NACC Semifinal

MILWAUKEE (WLCSports.com) – An 18-point run in the opening quarter helped the top-seeded Wisconsin Lutheran College women's basketball team cruise to a 73-43 win over fourth-seeded Lakeland on Thursday night in a NACC Tournament Divisional Semifinal inside the Recreation Complex. Junior Jenna Mace (Wisconsin Dells, Wis.) scored a game-high 16 points as the Warriors advanced to host Edgewood on Saturday in the North Division Final.

• Final Score: Wisconsin Lutheran 73, Lakeland 43
• Records: Wisconsin Lutheran (10-1), Lakeland (6-6)
• Location: Recreation Complex, Milwaukee, Wis.

• With the score even at two early in the first quarter, the Warriors rattled off 18 consecutive points to take a commanding 20-2 lead. WLC utilized three Lakeland turnovers and knocked down six free throws during the run, with juniors Kalies Birkholz (Watertown, Wis.) and Ally Gough (Horicon, Wis.) each connecting on a triple. Wisconsin Lutheran closed the quarter with another six unanswered points and led 26-4 after one.
• The Warriors saw their lead reach 30 points in the second quarter following a 7-0 run. Gough made another three while freshman Liz Bagley (West Bend, Wis.) forced a turnover and scored on the fast break. A free throw from Mace gave WLC a 39-9 advantage with 1:50 remaining in the first half. The Green and White maintained that lead for the remainder of the half to lead 41-11 at the break.
• Coming out of halftime, the Muskies scored the first seven points of the third quarter to make the score 41-18 with 7:20 on the clock. Mace responded with seven unanswered points of her own to extend the lead back to 30. The Warriors closed the quarter with four makes from the line and led 56-27 after three.
• Junior Abby Vavra (Mukwonago, Wis.) scored a pair of baskets early in the fourth quarter for Wisconsin Lutheran to match a couple scores from Lakeland. WLC saw its lead reach a game-high 33 points on layups from sophomore Simeon Schult (Wausau, Wis.) and freshman Ana Glisper (Milwaukee, Wis.). Schult added one more bucket with less than a minute to play as the Warriors defeated Lakeland 73-43 to advance to the North Division Final.

• Mace led the way with 16 points on 4-of-5 shooting for the Warriors. She added six rebounds and a pair of assists. Freshman Kaitlyn Shadoski (Janesville, Wis.) added 10 points to round out Wisconsin Lutheran's players in double figures.
• WLC shot a season-high 47.1 percent (24-of-51) from the floor and 40.0 percent (6-of-15) from deep. The Green and White also converted 70.4 percent (19-of-27) from the charity stripe, with Mace knocking down six freebies.
• Defensively, the Warriors forced 23 turnovers and posted 12 steals, led by four from Birkholz. This led to a 33-15 advantage in points off turnovers for Wisconsin Lutheran.
• WLC dominated inside, out-scoring Lakeland 32-18 on points in the paint.

• Kacey Gardner led the Muskies with 15 points on 6-of-13 shooting. As a team, Lakeland shot 28.3 percent (15-of-53) from the floor and 16.7 percent (4-of-24) from beyond the arc.
• Megan Will pulled down a game-high nine rebounds and posted a pair of steals.

• The Warriors will host second-seeded Edgewood (11-4) on Saturday in the NACC North Divisional Final. The Eagles defeated third-seeded Concordia Wisconsin 61-51 tonight to advance and will play Wisconsin Lutheran for the third time in the last four games. Tip-off on Saturday is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside the Recreation Complex. Live coverage links will be available at WLCSports.com.

WATCH: @WLC_WBB highlights from tonight's win over Lakeland https://t.co/BaKrbpwcYZ

— WLC Warriors (@WLCSports) March 5, 2021

WBB Final: @WLC_WBB 73, Lakeland 43

⚔️@Jennamace3 leads two players in double figures with game-high 16 points
⚔️Warriors shoot season-high 47.1 percent
⚔️WLC out-scores Lakeland 33-15 in points off turnovers#WeAreWarriors #NACCtion #d3hoops pic.twitter.com/oIze9VM6vz

— WLC Warriors (@WLCSports) March 5, 2021

WBB: Top-seeded @WLC_WBB opens NACC Tournament play tonight hosting Lakeland.

��Lakeland
��️March 4, 2021
��Time of Grace Center
⏲️7 p.m.
��https://t.co/OVbE8KbyKd
��https://t.co/hieztLwig4
��https://t.co/y4eGn6Cxyd

Fan Policy: https://t.co/dBW1UBE5EO#NACCtion #d3hoops pic.twitter.com/CPgdZMyj9Q

— WLC Warriors (@WLCSports) March 4, 2021