Top Seeds Prevail in Opening Round of Women's Basketball Tournament
FORT WAYNE, Ind. - (TOURNAMENT PAGE) - The 2022 Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) Women's Basketball Tournament saw the top four seeds advance on the first day of play. Top-seeded Indiana Tech eliminated No. 8-seeded Madonna 66-26 to start the night. Second-seeded Rochester stepped on the gas and defeated No.7-seeded UM-Deaborn 102-67. Third-seeded Siena Heights pushed past No. 6-seeded Aquinas, 60-47 and No. 4 Concordia outlasted Lawrence Tech 60-49.
Quarterfinals - Feb. 22
#1 Indiana Tech (19-1, 28-2) def. #8 Madonna (7-13, 8-22), 66-26
Indiana Tech jumped to a 15-5 lead at the end of the first and never looked back as they held Madonna to just 16.1% shooting from the field. The Warriors had a balanced attack placing four in double figures led by Emma Tuominen's 16-point performance. A bright spot for Madonn was Megan Aho's 16 points.
Stat Leaders
Points: Emma Tuominen 16 (IT); Megan Aho 16 (MU)
Rebounds: Emma Tuominen 10 (IT); April Hudelson 10 (MU)
Assists: Genevieve Decker-Ter 4 (IT); Sharon Woodard 1 (MU)
#4 Concordia (14-6, 19-11), def. #5 Lawrence Tech (11-9, 15-16), 60-49
Concordia jumped to a 26-16 lead after two periods before Lawrence Tech mounted a comeback in the third to outscore the Cardinals 16-12 and pull to within six points. Taylor Leatherman was fouled on a layup and made the old-fashioned three to extend CUAA's lead to nine in the opening minute of the fourth quarter. Seven minutes later, LTU had closed the gap to just three thanks to Kendall Fisher's nine points in that time span. Samantha Dorn hit two crucial freethrows with 2:14 left in the game to push the Cardinal's lead to five and out of reach.
Stat Leaders
Points: Lexey Tobel 30 (RU); Cydney Williams 16 (UMD)
Rebounds: Lauren Wynn 17 (RU); Maya Barakat 7 (UMD)
Assists: Elysia Mattos 10 (RU); Ro'Zhane Wells 4 (UMD)
#3 Siena Heights (15-5, 24-7) def. #6 Aquinas (10-10, 15-11), 60-47
The teams engaged in tight battle during the first two quarters with SHU taking a 24-19 lead into the half. A strong third quarter fueled by Peyton Banks put Siena Heights up by 11 heading into the last quarter. Aquinas stayed within striking distance, but was unable to close the gap as Banks scored 15 of her game-high 17 points, matching teammate Anaya Powell, in the final two quarters. Banks pulled down 11 rebounds for a double-double. Marissa Brady led Aquinas with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Stat Leaders
Points: Peyton Banks, Anaya Powell 17 (SHU); Marissa Brady 14 (AQ)
Rebounds: Peyton Banks 11 (SHU); Marissa Brady 10 (AQ)
Assists: Peyton Banks 5 (SHU); Jordyn Wigg 3 (AQ)
#2 Rochester (16-4, 22-8) def. #7 UM-Dearborn (9-11, 11-19), 102-67
Both teams came out firing and put up a combined 53 points in the first quarter with Rochester leading 33-20. The Warriors continued to push on offense and built a comfortable 51-31 lead after two. UM-Dearborn was able to outscore RU in the third quarter as six different players scored, but Rochester rebounded in the fourth thanks to Victoria Guardiola's 11 points.
Stat Leaders
Points: Lexey Tobel 30 (RU); Cydney Williams 16 (UMD)
Rebounds: Laura Wynn 17 (RU); Maya Barakat 7 (UMD)
Assists: Elysia Mattos 10 (RU); Ro'Zhane Wells (4) UMD)