March 4, 2007
CLEVELAND - Falling in the first round of the 2007 Mid-American Conference Tournament, the Miami University women's basketball team (12-18; 6-10 MAC) could not find an answer for Western Michigan's Carrie Moore as the Broncos (14-17; 6-10 MAC) handed the RedHawks a 74-58 loss Sunday afternoon at Quicken Loans Arena. Moore, who was named the MAC Co-Player of the Year and entered the game as the nation's leading scorer, scored 34 points and grabbed seven rebounds as Western Michigan handed Miami its fifth straight loss.
Following a pre-game pep talk from former Miami standout and current Cleveland Cavaliers forward Ira Newble, the Red and White got off to a sluggish start and fell behind, 11-6, by the first media timeout. Western Michigan scored nine of the first 11 points of the game, but a pair of baskets by junior Jaclyn Leininger and a mid-range jumper from sophomore Ashley Hawkins at 15:43 brought the RedHawks back within five points.
A 7-2 Miami run, sparked by a 3-pointer from sophomore Jenna Schone and baskets from Leininger and Hawkins, knotted the game at 13-13 with 12:21 remaining in the first half.
Western Michigan strung together a 9-2 run that included five points from Amanda Parker, as the Broncos took a 22-15 lead and forced Miami to burn a 30-second timeout with 9:54 left in the half.
After the timeout, Western Michigan scored the next four points, and the Broncos kept their lead at 11 at 34-23 heading into the final media timeout with 3:38 left in the half.
Though Miami shot 43 percent from the field in the first half, it still trailed, 43-29, at intermission. Western Michigan shot 50 percent from the field and hit all 11 of its free throw attempts, while the nation's leading scorer Carrie Moore put up a game-high 15 first-half points. Miami also struggled to contain Lindsey Brown, who scored 11 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Broncos. Leininger and Hawkins each had eight first-half points for Miami.
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Miami scored the first four points out of halftime, but a 12-4 Western Michigan run, sparked by a pair of 3-pointers from Moore, gave the Broncos a 20-point lead at 57-37 and forced the RedHawks to use a 30-second timeout with 16:13 remaining.
The Broncos led by double-digits for the remainder of the second half as it wrapped up a 16-point first-round win. The win was Western Michigan's first over Miami in the teams past five meetings in the MAC Tournament.
Leininger led Miami with 16 points, while Hawkins (14 points) and Schone (11 points) also scored in double figures. Junior guard Amanda Jackson was hurt midway through the second half and did not return to the game.
The Red and White ended the season with a 12-18 record, an improvement of four wins from a year ago. Miami's six MAC wins also doubled its conference win total from a season ago.
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