Mayville State University hosted the Wildcats from Johnson and Wales on Saturday, January 14, 2012 at the Lewey Lee Fieldhouse. Mayville State knew their defense would need to be on its' game against a Wildcats offense averaging over 74 points a game. Johnson and Wales is a team that likes to put up the three as they average 30 three-point attempts per game.
The Comet defense did their job as they held the Wildcats for 47 points in the game.
Hailey Longtin got the offense started as she had 16 points in the first half, making four out of five shots from three. Longtin finished with a team-high 20 points.
Megan Groen followed Longtin with 17 points. Groen had a nice overall game with six assits, five steals, and three blocked shots. Groen also led the team at the free throw line going 9-for-11.
Ashley Holmstrom and
Erin Ericson each scored 10 points giving the Comets four in double figures in the game. Holmstrom did a great job on the glass grabbing a game-high 13 rebounds. She was doing a lot of the dirty work for the Comets that usually goes unnoticed.
Mayville State forced 29 Wildcat turnovers in the game. After Groen with five steals, Ericson had four,
Angela Tauer and
Kay Laforet each got two. The Comet defense suffocated the Wildcats holding them to 28% shooting from the floor and 27 points under their average.
Johnson & Wales did make a run in the second half but it wasn't long before the Comets defense got going and shots started falling. The Comets shot 43% from the floor and made six shots from the three point line.
Mayville State University (12-6) will be in action again next weekend in the DAC tip-off tournament in Valley City, ND. The Comets play at 2:00 p.m. against the Valley City State University Vikings.
