MCKENZIE, Tenn. –The No. 24 Bethel Lady Wildcats pushed their record to 8-4 with an 90 -52 win over visiting NCAA DIII Covenant College Monday night in Crisp Arena. The Cats moved to 6-2 at home this year and 124-17 all-time in Crisp.
Covenant is 0-6 on the season and 0-4 in road games.
It was the first ever meeting between the two programs.
The Lady Cats jumped out to a quick start and led 31-15 at the end of the first quarter. Jani Crawford scored 16 in the quarter while Millie Bryant followed with eight. Bethel hit six three-pointers in the first ten minutes.
Bethel put the game away in the second quarter outscoring the visitors from Georgia 19-6. The Lady Cats led 50-21 at the break. Bethel would go on to lead at the end of the third quarter 73-39.
The Lady Wildcats forced Covenant into 26 turnovers and had a 34-9 advantage in points off turnovers. Bethel had a 45-21 margin in points in the paint.
Twelve different Lady Cats scored in the game. Crawford led the Cats with a career high 26 points. Mickey Head had 12 points while Bryant had 11 on the night. Ever Walker had a career high 12 assists. Ashton Hulme had a game high eight rebounds. Madison Henegar had another solid performance with eight points and three rebounds.
Mary Elanie Mitchell led the Scots with nine points.
Coach Chris Nelson was pleased with the game and result. "Tonight was healthy for our basketball team. We have been playing a bunch of line ups this year and being youthful but feel like we are finally molding this team together and growing in the right direction. Having Jani back in the lineup helps a ton, not only with her scoring but her leadership on the court. Ever is staying aggressive and doing a great job. She is making everyone around her better. Tonight was good for our entire team as we were able to go deep in our bench and reward our kids that have been bringing it every day in practice. We will rest for a couple days and gear up for a big MSC road trip."
The Lady Cats return to MSC play as they travel to Williamsburg Thursday to meet Cumberlands University at 4:30 p.m. It will be the third meeting between the two programs with the series tied at one each. It will be the first of three straight conference road games for the Lady Wildcats. They follow the CU game with games at UPike and Georgetown.
Live video:
https://cumberlandspatriots.com/watch/?Live=91&type=Live
Live stats:
http://www.dakstats.com/websync/Pages/Webcasts.aspx?association=10
