Women's Basketball Pulls Away From Wolverines to Pick Up WHAC Victory

(Dearborn, MI)-- The Cleary Cougar women's basketball team returned to action Wednesday evening, as they took an early lead and never looked back, handing the UM-Dearborn Wolverines a 64-44 defeat.

After a sluggish start for both teams, in which the two teams combined for eight points in the first 5:10 of game play, Cleary would gain momentum with a pair of layups to build an 8-4 lead.  After trading baskets, Melanin Holman connected from behind the arc to make it a 15-8 Cleary lead with under a minute to go in the opening quarter.

UM-Dearborn would show some grit in the second quarter, and came back to tie the game at 19-19 with 4:30 to go in the half.  A Karissa Cochran three pointer, followed by a Makenna Jarratt jumper gave the Cougars a five-point cushion once again, with 3:42 to play in the second quarter.  The Wolverines would answer with a 5-0 run, tying the game at 24-24, but the Cougars responded with an 8-0 run to finish the half, as Cleary led 32-24 at the break.

After giving up the first points of the third quarter, Cleary picked up right where they left off in the first half, and was able to build a nine-point lead after Izzy Dugal made a layup with 7:50 to go in the stanza.  A minute later, Makenna Jarratt hit a three to give the Cougars a double-digit advantage, and after a Melanin Holman layup one possession later, the lead had grown to 40-26.  The Wolverines would cut their deficit to 42-32 with 2:41 left in the quarter, but a Samantha Hoelscher layup would give Cleary a 46-34 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

UM-Dearborn would score four unanswered points to start the fourth, cutting the Cougar lead to eight points at 46-38.  Cleary would then go on a 14-2 run, building a 60-40 lead late in the game.  Cleary's defense would remain stifling down the stretch, and the game would end with Cleary earning their second WHAC victory with a 64-44 score.

Samantha Hoelscher would have a game high 15 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Cougars.  Izzy Dugal would have a solid game with 13 points and 6 rebounds.  Melanin Holman added 11 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists, while Karissa Cochran added 10 points.

The 44 points allowed by the Cougars matches a program best, as the Cougars won last season 67-44 in a win over Defiance.

Cleary improves to 3-5 overall, 2-2 in the WHAC.  The Cougars will look to make it two in a row on Saturday, December 6, when they host the Cornerstone Golden Eagles at Gannon Gymnasium.  The game is set to begin at 1:00 PM.