LEXINGTON, Ky. (WLCSports.com) - Senior
Sam Leisemann (Fall River, Wis.) scored 18 of her team-high 20 points in the second half to lead Wisconsin Lutheran College to a 63-54 win over Alma on Saturday at the Transylvania Pat Deacon Classic inside the Clive M. Beck Center.
The Warriors (3-1) overcame 34.5 percent shooting in the first half with a 50 percent performance in the second half to defeat the Scots (3-3) for their second straight win over a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association opponent.
AC jumped out to an 8-2 lead over WLC midway through the first quarter, but freshman
Margie Stevens (Oneida, Wis.) gave Wisconsin Lutheran its first lead at 10-9 on a layup with 0:51 seconds remaining. Alma used a three-point possession in the final seconds to take a 12-10 lead through one quarter of play. The teams combined for 9-for-32 shooting from the floor in the lowest scoring quarter of the contest.
The Warriors took a 19-15 lead with 5:18 left in the second quarter behind back-to-back threes from senior
Meggie Scott (Yorkville, Ill.) and freshman
Courtney Park (Rockford, Ill.). The Scots answered with a 9-0 scoring run for a five-point lead with just over two minutes left until halftime. WLC evened the score 24-24 at the break thanks to a jumper from junior
Lexy Smit (Brandon, Wis.) and a three from junior
Janiyah Goner (Milwaukee, Wis.).Â
AC held a slim third quarter lead for nearly six minutes, but Leisemann scored all the points during an 11-1 scoring run to put Wisconsin Lutheran ahead for good, 38-32. The Warriors went into the fourth quarter with a 40-36 advantage, as Leisemann netted 12 of the team's 16 points in the frame.
WLC, which shot 53.3 percent in the fourth quarter, never saw its lead drop below five points. An 11-3 run lifted Wisconsin Lutheran's lead to a game-high 14 points at 57-43 with 2:59 left. Alma answered with an 8-0 scoring run of its own, but Scott sealed the win with four of the final six points from the charity stripe.
Leisemann posted her second straight double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds, including a perfect 7-for-7 shooting in the second half. Scott added 12 points, six rebounds, and six assists. Smit and Stevens chipped in with nine points apiece. The Warriors shot 42.1 percent (24-for-57) from the floor and outscored AC 34-16 in the paint.
Taylor Sas scored a game-high 23 points to lead Alma, which shot 29.1 percent (16-for-55) from the floor.Â
WLC will take on top-ranked and defending national champion Transylvania (2-0) tomorrow at 2 p.m. CST in the championship game of the Pat Deacon Classic. Live coverage links will be available at WLCSports.com.
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