by FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The Saginaw Valley State University women’s basketball team fell, 75-71, to Nova Southeaster in a closely fought battle on Sunday afternoon. Tori DePerry (Stockbridge Munsee/Chippewa) led the team with another double-double after scoring 21 points and hauling in 10 rebounds as she finished the week averaging 18.5 points per game and 10.5 rebounds per game.
Jessica Massey scored 17 points on 60% shooting from the floor while pulling down six boards and a team-high four assists. Emma Dziezgowski contributed 17 points and ten rebounds to complete the first double-double of her collegiate career.
The Cardinals built a 5-0 lead in the opening three minutes of the first quarter as they held onto the lead throughout the 10-minute period.
A 9-0 run in the second quarter flipped the advantage to the Sharks as the score sat at 27-25 with just under five minutes left in the first half. The lead would change three more times before the teams went to the locker room at the half. Massey made three free throws and a layup to give the Cardinals a 35-30 lead. A free throw from NSU left the halftime tally at 35-31.
The lead changed four additional times in the third quarter as the period ended with a tie at 50 going into the deciding quarter of regulation. Nova Southeastern shot 53.8% from the field in the third stanza but still only managed to tie the Cardinals.
A three by Dziezgowski and a layup by Massey pushed SVSU to a 59-54 lead in the opening three minutes of the fourth. The Sharks fought to tie the score at 61 before recapturing the lead with a three-point jumper with 2:49 left on the clock. SVSU took the lead for the final time with a layup by DePerry until NSU capitalized on their late free throws to hold onto the victory.
