WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Results

Dordt College Women's Basketball vs. Briar Cliff

December 8, 2010

Game Media

(Sioux City, Iowa) The Briar Cliff Lady Chargers forced the Defender women into 24 first half turnovers, that combined with 25% from the floor for Dordt in the first 20 minutes gave the Chargers a 31 point half-time lead at 48-17 and Briar Cliff cruised to the 92-62 GPAC win.

A 3 point basket by Amber Soodsma gave the Defenders a 5-3 lead with 16:20 to go in the first half but 3 straight turnovers by Dordt enabled Briar Cliff to rattle off the next 8 points and take an 11-5 lead on the Defenders at 13:45. Six more turnovers over a 3 minute period allowed the Chargers to stretch the lead to 14 at 23-9 with under 10 minutes to play. With just under 9 minutes to play the game was still in reach for the Defenders with the score 23-11 following a pair of Julia DeKoekkoek free throws. The Chargers then went on a 17-0 run to blow the game wide open at 40-11 with 4:43 to go and took a 39 point lead into half at 48-17.

A 3 point basket four minutes into the second half by Dordt freshman Danelle Miedema cut the lead down to 29 at 60-31 but the Defenders would get no closer for the duration of the contest. Dordt committed only 6 turnovers in the second half and outscored Briar Cliff 45-44.

"It was a disappointing loss," stated Dordt Head Coach Craig Stiemsma, "we were far too tentative on offense in the first half and had way too many turnovers. We did not respond well to Briar Cliff's pressure. We attacked the basket better in the second half and we need to do that more often. We have great leadership from our seniors and they are staying very positive and that is good for us as we look forward."

Dordt was led in scoring by freshman guard Danelle Miedema (Sibley, IA) with 17 points. Brianna Spronk (Edgerton, MN) also finished with double digit points with 13. Amber Soodsma (Hudsonville, MI) had a team high 6 rebounds.

The Chargers were led by Michelle Determan's 16 points and Alex Grant, Kela Cihak and Morgan Brown all finished with more than 10 points at 15, 12 and 12 respectively. Kela Cihak also pulled down a game high 9 boards.

Briar Cliff enjoyed a slim 39-35 advantage in rebounding and turned the ball over 22 times. Briar Cliff shot 52% from the floor while the Defenders were at 35%. Dordt was 19-24 from the free throw line for 79% and Briar Cliff finished at 75% making 21 of 28.

With the loss Dordt College moves to 7-4 overall and 1-3 in GPAC play.

Other GPAC scores:
Northwestern at 82
Morningside 72

Sioux Falls at 72
Dakota Wesleyan 53

Hastings at 62
Concordia 59

Doane at 43
Mount Marty 83

GPAC Standings:
Northwestern/5-0/12-0
Sioux Falls/4-1/10-1
Morningside/4-1/9-1
Mount Marty/3-1/10-3
Briar Cliff/3-1/6-6
Concordia/2-3/6-5
Nebraska Wesleyan/1-2/5-3
Midland/1-2/5-5
Dordt/1-3/7-4
Doane/1-3/2-9
Hastings/1-4/6-7
Dakota Wesleyan/0-5/2-10

The Lady Defenders will play host to the University of Sioux Falls on Saturday, December 11 at 2:00 pm.

Dordt's Current Record: 7-4 (1-3)
Opponent's Current Record: 6-6 (3-1)

Team 1st Half 2nd Half Final
Dordt College 17 45 62
Briar Cliff 48 44 92
Dordt Rebounding Leaders Total
Amber Soodsma 6
Bre Schneidermann 5
Brianna Spronk 5
Julia DeKoekkoek 4
Team Total: 35
Opponent Rebounding Leaders Total
Cihak, Kela 9
Salcedo, Megan 5
Dilla, Kylie 4
Evans, Kelsey 4
Team Total: 39
Dordt Scoring Leaders Total
Danelle Miedema 17
Brianna Spronk 13
Bre Schneidermann 7
Amber Soodsma 5
Team Total: 62
Opponent Scoring Leaders Total
Determan, Michelle 16
Grant, Alex 15
Brown, Morgan 12
Cihak, Kela 12
Team Total: 92
Dordt Team Shooting Pct
Field Goals: 19/54 35%
3-Point Field Goals: 5/17 29%
Free Throws: 19/24 79%
Opponent Team Shooting Pct
Field Goals: 32/62 52%
3-Point Field Goals: 7/17 41%
Free Throws: 21/28 75%

For more information, please contact Mike Byker, Sports Information Director, at mbyker@dordt.edu or (712) 722-6301.