MONROE, La. – The ULM Warhawks rallied from a 15-point deficit behind a huge second half from sophomore Linda van Schaik, only to fall two points short against visiting Mississippi Valley State, 53-51, Tuesday night at Fant-Ewing Coliseum.
ULM scored on its first six possessions of the game to build a 13-6 lead with 6:07 left in the first quarter on the strength of eight points from sophomore Gara Beth Self and five points from junior Kierra Brimzy. The Warhawks' sizzling start fizzled quickly after Self's jumper put ULM ahead by seven.
Mississippi Valley State responded with an 11-0 run and scored 16 of the final 18 points of the quarter to surge ahead, 22-15, at the end of the first quarter.
ULM pulled as close as five two times early in the second quarter, but MVSU slowly built its lead out to 11 at halftime, 33-22.
The Devilettes pushed the lead to as much as 15 in the third quarter before ULM came to life behind van Schaik. Van Schaik made her first appearance in the game at the 4:08 mark of the third quarter with her team trailing 42-27. The South Holland, Netherlands, native promptly knocked down a 3-pointer and sunk three free throws before drilling another trey to cut the gap to seven at 45-38. Senior Diamond Brooks connected on a shot in the middle of the lane to close the quarter, cutting the MVSU lead to five at 45-40 after three quarters.
In the fourth quarter, van Schaik hit another trey to bring the Warhawks within four at 49-45 with 5:30 to play. Van Schaik then drove through traffic to the basket to hit a layup to bring ULM within two at 49-47 with 4:47 remaining.
Gara Beth Self pulled ULM within two at 51-49 with 3:32 left, but the Warhawks were unable to take advantage of four consecutive possessions with a chance to tie or take the lead, missing one shot and committing three turnovers.
After MVSU hit two free throws with 1:08 remaining, van Schaik had one more bucket in her, driving to the hoop again and hitting another layup to bring the Warhawks within two once again, 53-51, with 47 seconds left. The Devilettes turned the ball over on the ensuing possession, giving ULM another chance to tie or take the lead, but the Warhawks turned the ball back over with six seconds to play. MVSU missed a pair of free throws, but van Schaik's half court heave at the buzzer came up short as the Devilettes held on for the win.
Van Schaik led the way for ULM with 16 points, all in the final 14:08 of the game. Self had 14 points and Brimzy added 13. Zakiya Mahoney paced MVSU with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
The Warhawks visit Louisiana Tech at 6:30 p.m. Thursday. Links to live video, audio and stats are available at ULMWarhawks.com.
