Huntington sweeps MVNU with 76-59 win

HUNTINGTON, Ind. - The Forester women's basketball team wrapped up the regular season sweep over Mount Vernon Wednesday afternoon by topping the Cougars 76-59 inside the friendly confines of Platt Arena. Maggard and crew are 10-4 when playing on their home turf this season.

With this win, HU improves to 12-11 overall, 6-7 in league play. With five regular season games remaining, the Foresters are tied for fifth with Grace in the CL standings.

Senior Emily Seboe put the first points on the board and there was no looking back for Huntington. A lot of HU's early success was compliments of their defense that gave up just seven points through the opening ten minutes. Bailey Kelham fueled the hosts' offense in the first quarter by knocking down three from long range to spearhead her team's 20-7 advantage at the first break.

Maggard's squad continued to pull away in the second quarter. It was a team effort as six different Foresters scored to cushion the lead to 42-21 by intermission. The opening twenty minutes saw HU force ten TOs and limit the Cougars to 25.8 percent shooting. At the other end of the floor, the hosts drained 57.1 percent of their shots which included going 7-for-14 beyond the arc.

While the second half was never in question, MVNU fought back to trim it to 11 midway through the fourth quarter, but a quick timeout got Huntington back on track. The Foresters reeled off the next seven points which included Kelham's fourth triple of the night to extend the lead to 18 at 73-55 with three-and-a-half minutes to go. It was smooth sailing the rest of the way.

Gabi Melby did a little bit of everything for her team by pouring in a team-best 19 points to go along with posting seven assists, four rebounds and two steals. Kelham finished with 18 points, three rebounds, three steals and two assists.

Olivia Raby chipped in 11 points and ripped down a team-high eight rebounds. She also handed out five assists and swiped two shots. Kyndell Jochim posted solid numbers off the bench by adding 11 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals.

The Foresters shared the ball well as 23 of their 28 field goals were assisted. Defensively they snagged ten steals, limited their guests to 20 field goals and gave up just six offensive boards.

MVNU (8-15, 2-11) was paced by Peyton Davis' 21 points and ten rebounds. Grace Vermilya tossed in ten as the only other Cougar to finish in double figures.

The Foresters head to Indianapolis on Friday for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off with #2 Marian.  

The Huntington University Foresters compete in 18 intercollegiate sports for men and women. In the past decade, Huntington has produced 154 NAIA All-America honors and 501 All-America Scholar Athlete honors. Huntington University is a comprehensive Christian college of the liberal arts offering graduate and undergraduate programs in more than 70 academic concentrations. U.S. News & World Report ranks Huntington among the best colleges in the Midwest.