HOLLAND, MICH. -- Senior Katy Steers (Portage, Ind./Portage) scored a game and career-high 20 points to help lead the Trine University women's basketball team to a 75-50 win against Albion (Mich.) College in a semifinal game of the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Tournament at Hope College in Holland, Mich.
In addition to scoring 20 points, Steers also grabbed eight rebounds and had a game-high six assists. Steers shot 41.7 percent (five-of-12) from the floor and was a perfect eight-of-eight at the free-throw line.
Two other players scored in double figures that included sophomore Kayla Wildman (Rockford, Mich./Rockford) who had 19 points and was five-of-five from three-point range. Fellow sophomore Tara Bieniewicz (Chesterfield, Mich./Dakota) rounded out the high scorers with 12 points.
Freshman Sam Underhill (Grand Rapids, Mich./Northview) grabbed a game-high nine rebounds in addition to scoring nine points. Junior Shay Herbert (Pinckney, Mich./Pinckney) also had a strong game on the boards with seven rebounds.
Trine (21-5) made a statement early allowing just a combined 14 points in the first half while scoring 41 points offensively. The Thunder allowed just seven points in both the first and second quarters and began the game with back-to-back jumpers on their way to having a 9-2 advantage following a three-pointer by Steers with just under six minutes to go in the first period. Albion (21-6) then outscored Trine, 5-2, to get to within four points, 11-7, when a pair of free-throws by Steers began a run of nine unanswered points for Trine to end the quarter and extended the lead to 13 points, 20-7, after the first 10 minutes.
A basket by Wildman to start the scoring quarter number two continued the run to 11 straight points before Albion scored its first points with just over nine minutes left in the half. A triple by Bieniewicz which was followed by a layup by Steers, then put the Thunder up by 18 points, 27-9. After a successful free-throw by the Britons, Steers and Wildman connected on back-to-back three-pointers to put Trine ahead by 20 points for the first time in the game with a 33-10 margin at the 5:31 mark and went on to lead by as many as 27 points with a halftime score of 41-14.
Sophomore Kelsy Taylor (Louisville, Ky./New Albany) scored on a layup during Trine's first offensive possession of the second half and gave the Thunder their largest lead of the game of 29 points, 43-14. The Britons tallied an ensuing seven straight points to get a little closer to Trine on the scoreboard, but still trailed by 22 points, 43-21, at the 7:33 mark. Another tre by Wildman and then one-of-two free-throws by Taylor ended the run and put Trine up ahead by 26 points, 47-21, with a little over seven minutes remaining. Albion pulled to with 20 points in the third quarter, but Trine opened the lead back up to a 27-point difference by the time the clock expired and went into the fourth quarter leading, 59-32.
In the fourth quarter, Trine led by as many as 28 points twice with the last one coming at the 2:37 mark following a jumper by Underhill. Albion wouldn't get any closer than 24 points the rest of the way as the Thunder went on to win by the final of 75-50 to advance to tomorrow's championship game.
Trine advances to face top-seeded Hope College in the MIAA Tournament title game tomorrow (Saturday, Feb. 29) at DeVos Fieldhouse in Holland, Mich. It will mark the fifth-straight appearance for Trine in the championship game and will be the fourth time in the last five that the Thunder and Flying Dutch have squared off to decide who will take home the tournament title. The game on Saturday is set for a 7:30 p.m. start.