Wayne State dispatched of No. 15 Northern Kentucky Saturday, handing the 2008 NCAA champions its first loss of the season and dropped NKU’s record to 3-1. WSU won, 62-57.
The Warriors lost the first three games of the season before they went up against Northern Kentucky.
Freshmen Chelsea Davis said the team was tired of losing, and Wayne State finally got over the hump.
The Warriors (1-3), who at one point led 17-10, hustled with 30 seconds left in the first half to keep within five points of Northern Kentucky. The half featured 11 turnovers from
Wayne State and 13 from NKU and resulted in a 25-20 score in favor of the Norse.
Guard Felicia Thomas said Northern Kentucky forced the team to rush a lot of shots in the first half.
Within minutes of the second half beginning, the Warriors had lost their fight as the Norse expanded the lead to 11.
But a shot by Chelsea Kouri brought the Warriors within eight points of NKU and revived the team’s momentum.
Thomas said the team got its confidence back.
“We picked up the defense and made them work hard to play offense,” she said.
Two shots and a free throw by Kouri brought the Warriors within four points. Deanna Crumpton followed it up with a blocked shot and the Norse turned the ball over.
Coach Gloria Bradley said one thing that affected the second half was turnovers. She said the Warriors, who turned it over three times in the second half after 11 in the first, meant a lot to the game.
“It’s less easy opportunities for them to get easy shots,” she said.
Northern Kentucky finished the game with an additional six turnovers.
With two minutes left in the game a foul discrepancy caused a slight delay in the action, but the score climbed to 60-55 in favor of the Warriors with 14 seconds left in the game.
“It says we’re getting better. We still have a way to go and you see some gaps,” Bradley said. “It’s a matter of getting everybody on the same page.”
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