Box Score Scots Fall 58-49 in Season Opener
WHEATON, Ill. – Jordan Heifner posted her first collegiate double-double and Maryville played the No. 13 team in the country tough before dropping its season opener.
The Scots fell 58-49 to Wheaton, which earned the lofty ranking from D3hoops.com in preseason polling. This was Wheaton's second game this week but the first for the Scots on Day 1 of the Beth Baker Classic. Otterbein defeated North Park 68-61 in the classic's opening game Friday.
Heifner just missed her career scoring high with 19 points, and the sophomore's 10 boards marked a first time in double-digits. She scored 12 points in the first half to keep the Scots close at 27-24.
"I really liked our fight tonight," Maryville head coach Darrin Travillian said. "Wheaton is an outstanding team, and a tremendous first test. I was happy with what we can learn about ourselves from this film."
Scots junior guard Courtney Carruthers scored just two points in the first half but knocked down a 3-pointer to open the third quarter for a 27-27 tie. Wheaton answered with 10 straight points and the Thunder led 41-33 heading to the fourth.
Maryville fell behind 45-33 but then the Scots rallied. Carruthers swished another trey, Heifner sank a pair of free throws and then Shelby Hix cashed in her first 3-ball of the year to narrow the margin to 45-40 with 6:09 showing.
Shooting Finally Picks Up
The teams traded 3-pointers three separate times as shooting finally picked up. Wheaton finally seized control when Annie Tate finished off her 22-point night with a layup just inside of 30 seconds that made it 56-49. Two Hannah Swider free throws accounted for the final margin.
Except for that fourth-quarter stretch, neither team could find its shooting touch in a typical early season result. Maryville finished at 30 percent from the floor and just 8-of-25 from long range, while Wheaton shot 33.3 percent and finished 5-of-29 from downtown.
Heifner in addition to her points and rebounds also handed out a team-leading three assists and made three steals. Carruthers finished with 10 points, Elsa Eckenrod contributed eight points and eight rebounds, and Hannah Jones blocked three shots.
"We are going to improve and grow every day," said Travillian. "Saturday will be another very difficult test, but I love my team."
Wheaton improved to 2-0. Maryville is 0-1. North Park enters Saturday's game at 1-1.
