After a slow start, the Raven Women's Basketball team controlled Saturday's home contest against the Culver-Stockton College Wildcats as they extended their winning streak to four games with the win.
Benedictine turned a halftime tie turned into a blowout as the Ravens dominated the third and fourth quarters en route to the 88-70 win.
The Ravens were hot from the field in the second, shooting 60.6 overall and making five out of 10 3-point attempts. The Ravens also grabbed 13 more rebounds in the game, helping in building a large cushion. Another big key to the game was ball movement – the Ravens had 24 assists and had five players in double-figure scoring. LaRanda Thomas led the team with 20 points while Kayla Staley added 15, and Rylee Neill, Natalie Smaron and Ali Brzozowski each netted 10 points. Staley and Smaron showed quality passing skills out of the post as they tied for the team lead in assists, with each picking up five.
The game couldn't have started much worse for the Ravens as the Wildcats built a 16-4 advantage just a few minutes into the game. The Ravens slowly chipped away at the deficit, trailing 21-12 after one quarter of play.
Better shooting in the second quarter aided the Ravens first-half comeback. After shooting 35 percent from the field in the opening quarter, the Ravens finished the first half shooting 51.5 percent from the field.
A bucket by Grace Brzozowski gave the Ravens their first lead late in the second quarter, but the Wildcats answered with a 3-pointer to retake the lead moments later. The Ravens second lead of the game came with less than a minute before the halftime break when Thomas buried a 3 from the corner to push the Ravens in front 40-38. The game entered halftime tied 40-40 after a pair of free throws by the Wildcats. It was all Ravens from that point forward.
Next up for the Ravens (9-6, 4-5 Heart of America) will be a road contest at (RV) Evangel University in Springfield, Mo. Monday's game will tip-off at 7 p.m. since there is only a women's game being played.
