Purdue Fort Wayne
Oakland
Mastodons Open Conference Season with Win over Golden Grizzlies
12/5/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 5, 2009
Box Score |
Photo Gallery 
Fort Wayne, IN - In their first game of the season at the Memorial Coliseum, the IPFW Mastodons did not disappoint the fans in attendance, out-scoring the visiting Oakland Grizzlies, picked second in the Summit League preseason poll, 40-34 in the second half to bring home the 64-58 victory over Oakland.
Stephanie Rosado scored a career-high 21 points, while adding a career-best 11 rebounds in the winning effort, her second double-double of the year. The sophomore transfer has reached double-figure scoring in each of her first six games in a Mastodon uniform, as 17 of her points tonight came in the second half. Anne Boese added 14 points off of the bench, with Jordan Zuppe scoring 12, and Chelsey Jackson eight.
Sarah Haluska pulled down seven rebounds for the second consecutive game, with Chelsey Jackson and Eva Ivanova each dishing out three assists. Courtney Reed had a team-best three steals, with Rosado blocking two shots.
The Mastodons out-rebounded Oakland 38-33, the third straight game IPFW has out-rebounded their opponent. That three game stretch is the longest since the 2006-07 squad did it in four consecutive contests. The team shot 25-of-56 from the field for the second straight game (44.6 percent), making 4-of-16 from long range (25.0 percent), and 10-of-13 on charity stripe attempts (76.9 percent).
IPFW led briefly in the first half when Ivanova made the first of two free throws to give the hosts a 3-2 lead, before Oakland ran off eight straight points capped on an Anna Patritto lay-in, taking Oakland ahead 10-3. The Mastodons twice cut the deficit to one in the first half, but would not take another lead in the remainder of the opening frame.
With Oakland leading by six with 4:10 left in the first half, the Mastodon defense kicked in, holding the visitors scoreless for the rest of the period, scoring six points during that span, including a jumper by Anne Boese that knotted the score with 19 seconds left in the first half, as the teams went into the locker room tied at 24.
The teams traded a pair of baskets to start the period, before Rosado gave IPFW their first lead since the early goings when she converted her try on the old-fashioned three point play. Trailing by one, Oakland scored the next four points to lead by three at 36-33.
With Oakland leading 38-35 with 13:42 remaining in the game, IPFW ran off a 14-2 run to lead by eight just under four minutes later. The eight-point lead would be the high-water mark for IPFW, as the team led by seven after a Rosado jumper with 5:43 left on the clock.
The feisty Golden Grizzly squad would not go down without a fight, and out-scored IPFW 9-2 over the next three minutes to tie the score at 58 apiece. The Mastodons were able to regain their composure, and held Oakland off the scoreboard for the last two and a half minutes of the contest, scoring six points during that span, all by Rosado, clinching IPFW's first win over Oakland since the teams met on January 19, 2008, the squads' first meetings as members of the Summit League.
Melissa Jeltema and Bethany Watterworth each scored 14 points for Oakland, as Jeltema and Hanna Reising each pulled down six rebounds. Jeltema and Riikka Terava each had three steals, with Oakland failing to block a Mastodon shot in the loss.
IPFW takes back to the court on Tuesday, December 8, when the team makes their trip to the Purcell Pavilion at the Joyce Center, as the Mastodons take on the fifth ranked Fighting Irish of Notre Dame, with tip-off slated for 7:00 PM in South Bend.
~Dons~
