(Peru, Neb.) – The Bobcats trailed by as many as ten early in the second half. However, the Peru State women's basketball team came back with a fury to pull off an upset over Culver-Stockton College (C-SC) on Saturday in front of nice alumni chili feed crowd. Peru State outscored the Wildcats 26-12 in the final 18 minutes of the game to pull off the 60-56 upset.
With the win, Peru State improved to 9-18 overall and 5-11 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference. Presently, the Bobcats are tied for seventh with Central Methodist University in the league standings.
Culver-Stockton, a team which was receiving votes in the latest NAIA Coaches' Top 25 Poll, fell to 18-8 overall, and are now 10-6 in the Heart. The Wildcats are presently fourth in the conference with two regular season games remaining.
Brianna Madrid takes the ball to the hoop, scores, and was
fouled early in the game to complete the old-fashion three-point
play. Madrid led all scorers with 14 points. Game Action Peru State took the early lead in the contest as
Brianna Madrid (Glendale, Ariz.) completed an old-fashioned three-point play to start the scoring.
The Wildcats came back and hit a three, followed by five more points before
Sydney Wilkinson (St. Joseph, Mo.) hit a jumper to cut the lead to 8-5 at the 15:47 mark in the first half. Another bucket by Madrid made it 8-7 Wildcats which was before Culver-Stockton would rattle off six straight points to lead 14-7.
With 12:07 left in the first 20 minutes,
Madara Laure (Riga, Latvia) hit a bucket to stop the Wildcat run, making the score 14-9. Back-to-back buckets by Culver-Stockton gave them their largest lead at that point at 18-9.
The Bobcats would cut the deficit to two at 21-19 after
Karlee Stuart (Las Animas, Colo.) grabbed an offensive rebound and put it back up for two.
C-SC would go on a 14-5 run to build to what would be their largest lead of the game at 35-24 with 2:43 left before intermission.
Peru State would finish the half with a 8-1 run of their own as Madrid completed another three-point play at the end of the half. The Bobcats trailed 36-32 at halftime.
To start the second half, the Wildcats would outscore Peru State 8-2 to build its lead back to ten at 44-34 at the 18:05 mark. It was after that point that the Bobcats started to make their comeback on their way to the upset.
Over the next nine minutes, Peru State would outscore the Wildcats 16-2 to take a 50-46 lead. A basket by Wilkinson put the Bobcats on top at 47-46.
Brittany Harward (Orem, Utah) followed with a bucket and Madrid added a free throw to get Peru State to its 50 points.
Peru State never trailed after that point and would lead by as many as seven at 55-48 after
Rylie Bowser (Holton, Kan.) hit a bucket with just over three minutes left on the clock.
Sydney Young shoots a three-pointer. Young would finish
the game with nine points.C-SC would cut the lead to one at 57-56, but a pair of free throws by
Sydney Young (Omaha) and one free throw by Madrid sealed the win for the Bobcats.
Team Statistics Culver-Stockton shot better from the floor than Peru State, but struggled from the charity stripe. The Wildcats finished the game making 24 of 58 field goals for 41.4% which included making 2 of 7 three-point tries for 28.6%. At the charity stripe, C-SC made just 6 of 13 for 46.2%.
The Bobcats hit 23 of 57 field goals for 40.4% and were just 2 of 15 from behind the arc for 13.3%. At the free throw line, Peru State went 12 of 18 for 66.7%.
The taller Wildcats held a huge rebounding advantage as they grabbed 41 boards compared to Peru State's 25. The big difference in favor of the Bobcats came as the Wildcats committed 24 turnovers while Peru State only had 12.
Individual Statistics Only Madrid finished in double figures for Peru State as she finished with a game-high 14 points. Stuart and Young were just one shy of double figures. Bowser and Harward each added seven points.
Stuart just missed a double-double as she grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds. Harward added three boards.
Stuart was credited with the lone assist for Peru State on the afternoon. Wilkinson grabbed a game-high seven steals with Stuart nabbing three.
CULVER-STOCKTON GAME BOOK Upcoming Games With two games remaining in the conference regular season, both will be crucial in determining Peru State's fate.
Karlee Stuart's trey cuts into Culver-Stockton's lead. Stuart
finished with nine points and added a game-high 13 rebounds. On Thursday night, the Bobcats will be hosting Baker University for Senior Night. The Wildcats are currently 11-5 in the Heart, good for third in the conference. Overall, Baker, who is also receiving votes in the coaches' poll, is 18-8.
Prior to the game, Peru State will recognize its six seniors – Stuart, Young, Harward,
Shelbie Hess (Phoenix), Bowser, and Madrid. Game time is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
On Saturday, the Bobcats will be traveling to Fayette, Mo., to face Central Methodist University at 2 p.m. Presently, the Bobcats and Eagles are tied for seventh in the conference with the Eagles presently holding the tie-breaker over Peru State having topped them earlier in the season. Central Methodist is 14-12 overall.
With two wins, Peru State could move into sixth in the league. With at least a split, the Bobcats would most likely host a conference play-in game on Monday, March 2, at 7 p.m. The likely opponent would be either Evangel University or Avila University.
