Wilmore, Ky. – Shawnee State Women's Basketball extended their winning streak to six on Friday night, topping Asbury University 97-66 at the Zweifel-Pritchett Classic.
The Bears would struggle to maintain a lead early on the game as both teams got off to a slow start. The first quarter saw both teams share shots as Ashton Lovely (SR/Jamestown, Ohio) hit a tough layup to put Shawnee State on the board and tie the game at 2. Scoring remained scarce as Asbury got out to a 7-4 lead before Bailey Cummins (JR/Brooksville, Kentucky) gave the Bears momentum with a three pointer to tie the game at seven. It remained a close quarter with SSU's Shania Massie (SR/Greenfield, Ohio) draining a clutch three at the buzzer to make it 18-18 at the end of the first period.
Massie started the second quarter off with another three pointer that gave the Bears a 21-18 lead that they didn't lose the remainder of the contest. The Bears heated up in period, led by impressive play from Shania Massie and Ashton Lovely. Later in the period, Natalie Zuchowski (FR/Ravenna, Ohio) would extend the Bears lead to 11 (35-24) with an offensive rebound followed by a second chance bucket. Shawnee State continued to pull away, holding the Eagles to just 12 points in the period going into halftime with a 42-30 lead.
There was no turning back for the Bears as they came out firing in the second half led by Hagan Schaefer who was a perfect 3-3 from beyond the arc in the third quarter, extending the Bears lead to 20. Massie continued her best performance of the season, tacking on four points and a handful of key rebounds as the Bears pulled away, going into the fourth quarter with a dominating 68-45 lead.
Early in the fourth, Hannah Miller (SR/Coal Grove, Ohio) would strike on a mid-range jumper followed by a deep three as the Bears roared into a 75-48 lead. Later, Hagan Schaefer would draw a foul on a three point shot and make the trio of free throws, giving the Bears a 30 point lead for the first time in the game. Asbury would fight back but it proved unsuccessful as the Bears would win the game with a final score of 97-66.
The Bears shot a cool 48% from the field on 35-73 shooting. It was an impressive three point shooting outing for SSU, going 14-35 for 40% from deep.
Shawnee State was led by 18 point performances from both Shania Massie and Hagan Schaefer. Massie made it a double double, pulling in 11 boards and tacking on five assists.
Autumn Herriford led the Eagles with 13 points, grabbing four rebounds as well.
The win improves the Bears to 6-0 on the season, as the Eagles drop to 2-4. The win extends SSU's lead on the all time series 7-0 against Asbury.
The Bears return to action tomorrow against Oakland City (Ind.) for day two of the Zweifel-Pritchett Classic. Tip off is set for 12:00 PM.
