DES MOINES, IOWA - Grand View Women's Basketball put together a strong performance in their home victory over Peru State College on Wednesday night. The Vikings came out hot, quickly building a lead with efficient shooting, strong defense, and fast breaks. They controlled the game throughout, securing a 90-61 win.
The Vikings started the night red-hot from behind the arc, hitting their first three attempts, including one from
Cleao Murray and two from
Ella Larsen. Larsen was a perfect 4-for-4 in the quarter from long range. A strong layup from Murray through the foul on an inbound play helped keep up the momentum. Grand View shined in transition, highlighted by a coast-to-coast layup from
Reagan Mudderman, an and-one finish on the run from
Brianna Fields, and a pull-up elbow jump shot from
Anna Gossling. Seven turnovers by Peru State in the period gave the Vikings a comfortable 28-14 lead.
Layups from Murray, Larsen, and Gossling kicked off the second quarter, although the Bobcats managed to find a small string of success through their post facilitation. Gossling delivered the initial response with a three-pointer on Mudderman's pass before Mudderman showed off her ball-handling skills and finished a layup through traffic. Struggles came as Peru State threw on a full-court press to speed up the game in their favor, collecting a handful of layups off their six steals in the quarter. Despite the slight setback, Larsen countered with a layup before closing out the half with an energizing tip-in buzzer-beater off a missed shot, stretching the lead back to 14 points, up 46-32. Larsen led all scorers at the break, recording a double-double in 20 minutes of play with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Freshman
Eva Solseth led the charge in the third, tallying ten points in the quarter and starting with a quick layup out of the gate. Larsen and
Ellie Rengstorf followed suit with baskets of their own to match the Bobcats' scoring. Solseth added another before a layup and three-point combo from Peru State. The teams continued trading baskets throughout the period, with Solseth also adding a layup and four free throws. Murray threw in a final live layup, and Fields added a free throw to push the Vikings' lead slightly ahead, 64-49.
Ready to extend their lead, Murray stepped up big in the fourth quarter, adding four layups within the first three minutes of play. Fields added one of her own, ignited by a steal and assist from Murray. Another layup on a Murray assist came from
Eva Peterson, before a layup from Solseth, off a pass from Rengstorf, continued to stretch the lead. Grand View wasn't ready to let up, and Murray knocked down a three-pointer on Larsen's pass, followed by a steal and score from Solseth. The Bobcats managed to put together a few baskets in the quarter, but the game was cemented with a Mudderman three-pointer, assisted by
Katie Fogarty, and a layup from Fields, assisted by Mudderman. The final score was a strong 90-61 in favor of the Vikings.
GAME NOTES
- Ella Larsen recorded a double-double with 23 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals.
- Cleao Murray tallied 21 points, 5 assists, and 2 steals.
- Eva Solseth chipped in 14 points, 3 assists, 3 rebounds, and 3 steals.
- Anna Gossling added 11 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists.
- The Vikings shot 58.3% (35-60) from the field, 36.4% (8-22) from deep, and 63.2% (12-19) from the free-throw line.
- Grand View totaled 20 assists as a team and bested the Bobcats in rebounds (32-30), points off turnovers (20-13), and points in the paint (52-38).
UP NEXT
The Vikings will receive a week-long break before hitting the road to face Graceland University on Wednesday, February 12th at 5:30 p.m.
