DES MOINES, IOWA – Grand View Women's Basketball dominated the Statesmen of William Penn University on Wednesday night, securing a decisive win at home. The Vikings jumped out to an early lead that they never relinquished, fueled by their high-pressure defense and fast-paced transition offense.
The game's first points came from
Anna Gossling as she laid in a basket on an inbound play set up by
Ella Larsen. As William Penn struggled with turnovers—committing seven in the first quarter alone—Grand View capitalized, converting them into 13 points.
Eva Solseth sparked the Vikings' defense with relentless pressure on the Statesmen ball handlers, recording back-to-back steals that led to fast break layups. A well-timed charge from
Ellie Rengstorf gave Grand View possession, and Larsen capitalized by sinking a three-pointer off a pass from Solseth.
Cleao Murray added several fast-break layups, including a memorable play in which she passed to Solseth, who quickly returned the ball to Murray for an easy two. William Penn made a brief run, closing the gap with a deep three-pointer and a quick layup, but
Taryn Lindsey's baseline jumper pushed the Viking lead to 19-10 by the end of the first quarter.
The Vikings' transition offense remained key in the second quarter, where they were able to double their lead. With another strong defensive showing that held the Statesmen to just 10 points in the period, Grand View extended their advantage to 41-20 at halftime. Murray led the charge, scoring 11 points in the quarter, including several fast-break layups and a three-pointer. By the break, she had 17 points and six rebounds. Contributions from Lindsey,
Katie Fogarty, and
Claire Galbraith helped sustain the offensive attack. As the first half wound down, Larsen made a standout defensive play, locking up the Statesmen point guard and following it up with a block, giving Grand View a comfortable 42-20 lead at the half. Solseth's all-around effort was evident in the first half, as she tallied five steals and four assists.
Coming out of the break, Grand View focused on meaningful offensive positions, showing off their stellar ball movement. Gossling connected on a three-pointer off a pass from Rengstorf, and Solseth followed with her own three on an assist from Gossling. William Penn briefly found a glimmer of hope with back-to-back three-pointers, but the Vikings quickly shut down their momentum. Larsen answered with her second three-pointer of the night, a deep shot off a pass from Rengstorf. The hot hand of the night, however, belonged to
Taryn Lindsey, who hit three straight three-pointers to close out the third quarter with Grand View leading 66-36.
The Vikings cruised to the finish, shooting an impressive 71.4% from three-point range and 60% from the field in the final quarter. Lindsey hit her fourth three-pointer, maintaining her perfect shooting performance from deep, while
Abigail Jones added two more of her own. Three buckets from Fogarty and a driving layup by
Reagan Mudderman kept the momentum rolling, while
Eva Peterson wrapped up the night with two three-pointers, bringing the final score to a dominant 91-47.
GAME NOTES
- Cleao Murray led with 17 points and 7 rebounds.
- Taryn Lindsey tallied 16 points, going a perfect 4-for-4 from deep, and grabbed 4 rebounds.
- Anna Gossling chipped in 12 points, 3 steals, 3 assists, and 3 rebounds.
- Ellie Rengstorf and Eva Solseth each dished out five assists.
- Eva Solseth led with 6 steals and added 9 points.
- Grand View shot 50% (36-72) from the field and 39.4% (13-33) from three-point range.
- The Vikings registered 26 assists, 18 steals, and generated 37 points off turnovers.
UP NEXT
The Vikings return to action this Saturday, January 11th, when they host No. 20 MidAmerica Nazarene University at 2:00 p.m. for their second matchup of the season.
