ANGOLA, Ind.—The No. 18 Trine women's basketball team won its first Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Tournament Championship on Saturday night with a 49-42 victory over Calvin in Hershey Hall. With the win, the Thunder earned an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament.
Trine improves to 24-2 this season. Its 24 wins moves into a tie for second place in school history for season victories, just one behind the 1988-89 season. The Thunder was propelled by a large crowd and boisterous student section that created a great home court advantage for the MIAA champions.
Junior Hayley Martin (Auburn, Ind./DeKalb) led the Thunder with a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds. Martin added three steals. Sophomore Brandi Dawson (Garrett, Ind./Garrett) notched 11 points with five rebounds. Cassidy Williams (Archbold, Ohio/Archbold) added nine points and four steals.
Calvin was paced by Anna Timmer with a double-double on 16 points and 12 rebounds. Ali Spayde added 10 points and six rebounds. The Thunder's strong defense limited Spayde, one of Calvin's leading scorers, to shoot four for 17 from the field.
The Thunder scored 11 points off turnovers to Calvin's three. Trine edged out Calvin, 28-26, in points in the paint. The Thunder's bench grabbed 11 points, while Calvin's only added one.
Senior Taylor Cole (Mt. Pleasant, Mich./Shepherd) scored the first points of the game for the Thunder in her last MIAA contest in Hershey Hall. Trine and Calvin traded leads three times in the first quarter. The Thunder took advantage of foul trouble by the Knights scoring seven points off free throws. Six players scored for the Thunder with Cole leading the way with four points. Calvin was led by Timmer and Lauren Goldthrope with four points each. The Thunder held a 16-12 advantage after the first 10 minutes of play.
Calvin scored the first four points of the second quarter to tie the game at 16 all. Trine and the Knights traded points to deadlock the game at 18-18. Both teams turned up their defensive play keeping the game tied for the next six minutes and 25 seconds. Montana Martin (Columbia City, Ind./Churubusco) was fouled and gave the Thunder back the lead, making her two free throws. Calvin tied up the game two more times before scoring the last four points of the quarter to take a 24-22 advantage heading into halftime. The Knights were led by Goldthrope with eight points. Williams grabbed four points with two steals.
Calvin increased its lead to 29-25 early in the third quarter. The Thunder switched gears to spur its offense. Williams made a free throw, and Dawson fought past a Calvin double team to score bringing Trine within a point. The Thunder defense kept Calvin scoreless and Ashley Elliott (Scottsburg, Ind./Scottsbug) grabbed a big rebound feeding the ball down to Montana Martin. Martin made her layup to give Trine a 30-29 edge. The Thunder caused another turnover and Hayley Martin grabbed another two points shooting over two Calvin defenders. Hayley Martin scored again on an assist from Elliot to give Trine a five-point advantage. Montana Martin shot the ball and Hayley Martin grabbed the rebound and scored after being fouled on the play. With Hayley Martin's sunk free throw Trine rode an 11-point run to hold a 36-29 advantage going into the last quarter. The Thunder outscored Calvin 14-5 in the third.
Calvin quickly came back in the fourth coming within a point after a six-point run. The teams traded points back and forth and Calvin was down by two with a little under four minutes left in the game. Dawson and Williams each made a layup before Timmer answered with a layup of her own to come within four points with a minute left on the clock. Hayley Martin sealed the win with a layup and added a free-throw point when Timmer fouled her on the play.
Trine awaits its selection to the NCAA Tournament. The field will be announced Monday at 2:30 p.m. Fans can tune in to the show at THIS LINK.
