Berea, OH – Alma College Women's Basketball was in action on the road, taking part in the Baldwin Wallace Women's Basketball Invitational on Sunday and Monday. The Scots suffered a pair of setbacks on the weekend, losing to nationally ranked host Baldwin Wallace on Sunday, and dropping a game to UW-Eau Claire on Monday.
#20/17 Baldwin Wallace 56, Alma 46
Alma opened the tournament against hosts Baldwin Wallace. The Yellow Jackets are currently ranked inside of the top 20 in both major national polls. The Scots hung tough in the early going, leading BW in the opening minutes before the Jackets were able to climb back into the game. After surrendering the lead, Alma held the deficit to two points at 16-14 after the first. The home five pushed out in front to open the second quarter, with Alma trailing with under three minutes to play in the half. However, the Scots rallied to take a four point 30-26 lead into halftime.
Out of the half, BW caught fire, erasing the Alma lead, and taking a five point advantage of their own in the opening three minutes. Alma was able to stop the bleeding, and managed to hang tough with the Yellow Jackets. At the end of the third, the visitors trailed by two, 42-40. Unfortunately for the Scots, their offense just couldn't lift the lid on the basket in the fourth quarter. It took Alma four minutes to notch their first point, and nearly eight minutes to score their first field goal of the quarter. Thanks to outstanding defense from the visiting five, they only trailed by nine at this point, and managed to get within seven before Baldwin Wallace escaped with a 56-46 victory.
Emmerson Goodin (16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals)
Brooke LeRoux (10 points, 9 rebounds) and
Cadence Kaminske (4 points, 5 assists) were the leaders in the loss.
UW-Eau Claire 75, Alma 49
On Monday Alma took on Wisconsin-Eau Claire in the consolation game. The game got off to a rocky start offensively for Alma, who couldn't find the twine for the game's first seven minutes. This allowed Eau Claire to put the Scots in a 15-0 hole. Despite the setback, Alma closed the period well to trail 17-7 after one. UWEC picked up the shooting efforts from the floor in the second quarter, and despite an Alma increase in the scoring column from seven to 11, the Blugolds led the Scots 34-18 at the half.
Alma continued to improve in the third quarter, scoring 19 points on 7-13 shooting from the floor. However an already hot Blugold offense caught fire, and Eau Claire poured on 26 points, leading 60-37 after three. Things calmed in the fourth quarter, and a pair of short short scoring stints from Alma weren't enough to drop the UWEC deficit within touching distance. In the end, the Scots dropped a 75-49 decision.
Brooke LeRoux (14 points, 5 rebounds)
Sarah Ebel (13 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals) and Cadence Kiminske (10 points) were the key contributors for Alma.
Brooke LeRoux was named to the all-tournament team for her efforts in both games, and the Scots look to bounce back at they reenter MIAA conference play on Saturday at Albion.
