SAINT MARY-OF-THE-WOODS, Ind. -- The Saint Mary-of-the-Woods women's basketball team used a game-winning jumper from
Brooklynn Jones with 3.5 seconds and the defense survived one final possession in route to a 73-71 victory over visiting Spring Arbor (Mich).
It was a battle of two unbeaten teams as the Pomeroys improved to 5-0 on the season while Sprint Arbor fell to 6-1.
Destiny Thomas led the Pomeroys offensively in the contest as she hit 7-of-10 shots from the field and was 6-of-7 at the free throw line to score 20 points. She added six rebounds in the victory.
Kylee Stepp stepped up as others were battling foul trouble and scored 14 points off the bench including four huge second half 3-pointers as the Pomeroys were battling back in the contest.
All told the Pomeroys connected on seven 3-pointers in the contest. A 3-pointer from Spring Arbor with 4:02 remaining in the third quarter staked them to a 51-39 lead -- their biggest of the game. SMWC countered with the game's next eight points capped by a pair of Thomas free throws with 1:41 on the clock to trim the deficit to 51-47. Stepp would hit one of her four trifectas with just over a minute remaining and
Aubrey Burgess drained a jumper at the buzzer to send the game into the fourth quarter with Spring Arbor hanging on by a point.
To open the fourth quarter, Burgess grabbed a steal and Stepp drained a triple with just over nine minutes remaining to push SMWC ahead 57-55. Another Stepp 3-pointer as the clock ticked under seven minutes remaining gave the Pomeroys a 62-59 lead.
Spring Arbor led 71-69 until
Matea Bartel leveled the score with 40 seconds remaining with a lay-up. The Pomeroys forced a turnover when Jones scored with 3.5 seconds left off a pull up jumper in the paint. Alana Nelson had a long look a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded but it was off the mark to send the Pomeroys to a 73-71 victory.
SWMC will travel to the University of Indianapolis on Tuesday, November 19 for a 6:30 p.m. (ET) tipoff as they will play their next four contests away from home.
