LIVONIA, Mich. -- The Siena Heights women's basketball team defeated Madonna in Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference (WHAC) play on Saturday afternoon by a score of 84-68. Demi Russell tallied a career-high 31 points to lead the Saints to victory.
THE BASICS
Final Score: Siena Heights 84, Madonna 68
Location: Livonia, Michigan (MU Activities Center)
Records: Siena Heights (15-5, 8-3 WHAC), Madonna (0-19, 0-11 WHAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Saints used two 6-0 runs and 16 points in the paint to hold an 18-14 advantage at the end of the first quarter. Russell was 4-4 from the floor for eight points in the opening 10 minutes of play.
Madonna survived another 6-0 run by SHU in the second quarter and outscored Siena 22-19 in the period as the Saints held only a 37-36 lead as the teams entered the locker room at the intermission.
The SHU bench outscored the Crusaders 10-0 in the third quarter to propel the Saints to a 22-19 advantage in third-period points as SHU continued to lead 59-55 as the game entered the fourth and final quarter.
An 8-0 run in the fourth put Siena up 73-63 with just 5:18 remaining in regulation. The Saints outpaced the Crusaders 25-13 in the final 10 minutes to close out the 84-68 decision.
TOP SAINTS
• Russell finished 14-19 from the floor while hauling in eight rebounds (2 offense, 6 defense) in 31 minutes of play.
• Kiana Votava tallied 13 points on 4-8 shooting from the floor. She was 2-3 from three-point range while pulling down game-high nine boards.
• Sharmaine Wills finished 5-7 shooting for 11 points. She also recorded five rebounds, one assist, and one steal.
• Jayshonna Blackshire led the Saints defense with three steals and scored eight points.
• Peyton Banks registered 16 points on 7-10 shooting and tallied four rebounds off the bench.
THE OPPOSITION
• Cierra Von Zittwitz led Madonna with 18 points and six rebounds.
• Sydney Brown tallied 17 points and five rebounds while Sheldon Bochenek scored 12 points and a steal.
• Emily Huff was the last Crusader in double figures with 10 points.
UP NEXT
The Saints return home to host Lawrence Tech in a WHAC matchup on Wednesday, January 16 at 6:00 p.m.
