Women's Basketball | 1/17/2023 2:16:00 PM

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Davenport women's basketball team makes the long trip to the Upper Peninsula beginning on Thursday with a showdown against Michigan Tech. The team will then travel over to Marquette on Saturday for a date with Northern Michigan. The Panthers are looking to snap a six-game skid against the Huskies and it will be a tall task on Thursday against second-place Michigan Tech. Davenport is 0-6 all-time in Houghton and last season's trip resulted in an 86-75 setback on Jan. 22, 2022. Toni Grace balled out with 25 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals in 32 minutes. Ajai Simmons scored 16 points and grabbed five rebounds. Lillee Gustafson grabbed a team-high 14 rebounds including eight offensive boards. Scout Nelson scored nine points but did foul out in 26 minutes. The Panthers shot 37.5 percent from the floor including 8-of-27 behind the arc and were also 13-of-17 at the free throw line. DU saved their best for the fourth quarter going 11-of-19 (57.9 percent) from the floor including 4-of-6 from behind the arc. The Wildcats are currently in fourth place in the GLIAC standings under first-year head coach Casey Thousand. The Panthers are 2-4 on the road in Marquette during the all-time series. DU's last trip was on Jan. 20, 2022 with a 59-45 loss to the Wildcats. The Panthers were cold from the field going 14-of-48 including 2-of-16 from behind the arc. The team finished with just 19 rebounds compared to 41 for the Wildcats including 16 offensive boards. NMU shot 38.6 percent for the game but were much better in the second half going 13-of-29 (44.9 percent). Toni Grace led the Panthers with 14 points and also had a team-high three steals. Scout Nelson scored nine points to go with five rebounds and two assists. Lillee Gustafson scored eight points in 22 minutes.

● Saginaw Valley State 62, Davenport 46 (Jan. 12)

The Panthers could not string together enough consistent offensive possessions against the Cardinals and were held under 50 points for just the third time this season. DU trailed 18-10 after the first quarter and shot 2-of-5 behind the arc and 1-of-7 inside the arc to fall behind. Mary Liedel made a three-pointer for Davenport's first points at 7:36 of the first quarter for a 3-2 lead. That however was the only lead of the game for the Panthers as the Cardinals scored the next 11 points to take a 13-3 lead with 2:59 left in the opening quarter.

In the second quarter, the SVSU lead hovered around the 8-12 point range before Alexa Kolnitys made a three-pointer with seven seconds until halftime to make it 25-19. Kaitlyn Zarycki pushed the ball upcourt and hit a running jumper at the horn to give SVSU a 27-19 halfime lead. The Cardinals shot 11-of-29 from the floor in the first half while the Panthers were 6-of-20.

The highest scoring quarter was the third but SVSU extended their lead with a 23-17 edge. The defense ramped back up on both sides in the fourth quarter as SVSU outscored DU 12-10 for a final score of 62-46.

Scout Nelson led the Panthers with 12 points and made both of her triple tries. Nelson also led the team with seven rebounds and two assists. Makenna Bryant scored 11 points, one shy of her season high, and hit double-digit points for the fourth time this season. Liedel finished with nine points and five rebounds in 31 minutes and got her first start of the season.

● Davenport 75, Wayne State 65 (OT) (Jan. 14)

The Panthers played their first overtime game of the season and picked up their first GLIAC win to boot against the Warriors. DU improved their home record to 6-2 this season.

Alexa Kolnitys started overtime with a big three-pointer which was her first make in five tries for the game. The Panthers then went inside to Lillee Gustafson for back-to-back baskets in the paint to build a 68-61 lead. The 9-0 run by DU was capped with a pair of free throws by Mary Liedel with 1:13 left in the game. The Warriors did not score until 1:03 and then made two free throws with 36 seconds left. Wayne State shot just 1-of-9 in overtime while DU was 3-of-3 in addition to 7-of-10 at the free throw line.

The balance on offense was the key for the Panthers who had five players score in double figures for the first time this season. Liedel led the team with 17 points scoring in double figures for the fifth time this season. She also had her first double-double with 11 rebounds to go with two assists, two blocks, and a steal. Gustafson finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds before fouling out in 25 minutes. She did most of this in the second half and overtime after just three rebounds and no points in the first half.

Nelson had 12 points and six rebounds while also taking care of the ball with four assists and just one turnover. Jaci Walker had a season-high 12 points off the bench in 16 minutes and grabbed four rebounds. Bryant added 11 points in 31 minutes and also had three rebounds and three assists. Claire Gregwer got her first start of the season and grabbed eight rebounds.

LIVE COVERAGE
Thursday, Jan. 19 at Michigan Tech - 5:30 PM - Live Audio - Live Video - Live Stats
Saturday, Jan. 21 at Northern Michigan - 3:00 PM - Live Audio - Live Video - Live Stats