Women’s Basketball Grabs Road Win at Loyola

Saturday, February 6

Baltimore, Md.

2 PM

Army West Point

19-2, 10-1PL

Loyola

9-13, 6-5PL

Army West Point

Loyola

Women’s Basketball Grabs Road Win at Loyola

February 06, 2016 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

BALTIMORE – The Army West Point women's basketball team overcame a slow start to earn its ninth straight victory in a 52-44 win over Loyola in Patriot League action on Saturday afternoon at Reitz Arena.

Army improves to 19-2 overall and 10-1 in the league, while Loyola drops to 9-13 and 6-5. The Black Knights outscored the Greyhounds, 33-22, in the second half after trailing by three points at the halftime break.

Senior Kelsey Minato netted 15 points and added six rebounds, two assists and two steals, while classmate Aimee Oertner tallied 12 points, four boards and four blocks. Freshman Madison Hovren finished with 10 points and four rebounds, and sophomore Janae McNeal scored seven points, to go along with four rebounds and four assists.

Jeneh Perry posted game highs of 18 points and nine rebounds for Loyola, while Colleen Marshall netted 13 points.

After Loyola took an early 2-0 lead, Army scored seven straight points during a span of 3:58 to go ahead 7-2. The Black Knights held the Greyhounds 0-for-5 from the field during the scoring run and created a turnover after senior Brianna Johnson drew an offensive foul.

Army missed its next four shots and Loyola netted five straight points as part of a 7-2 run that lasted the final 4:14 of the first period and brought the score to 9-9 by the end of the quarter. Perry accounted for five of those points for the Greyhounds.

The teams traded buckets early in the second period before the hosts used a 10-4 run to move out to a 21-15 advantage with 1:32 remaining in the half. The Black Knights committed four turnovers during Loyola's run, but turned things around to close out the period, shooting 2-of-3 and outscoring the Greyhounds, 4-1, in the final 1:08 of the half.

Minato netted her first points of the afternoon with a lay-up with 1:08 on the clock before Hovren converted a lay-in at the 37-second mark to pull Army back to within three points, 22-19, at the halftime break.

McNeal and Oertner contributed to a 9-1 run that gave Army a 28-23 lead during the opening 2:47 of the second half, with McNeal netting five points during the stretch and Oertner tallying four. The Black Knights scored seven straight to begin the period, including an old-fashioned three-point play from McNeal at the 8:45 mark.

Minato knocked in a three-pointer at the 2:33 mark of the third frame to build Army's lead to eight points, 35-27, before Bri Betz-White converted three free-throws during a 5-2 Loyola run that made the score 37-32 with 1:09 left in the third. Minato made two foul shots with 1:00 remaining to give the Black Knights a 39-32 lead after three quarters.

Minato made a lay-up at the 6:30 mark of the fourth period to build Army's advantage to 11, 45-34, but Loyola responded with four points of its own to cut its deficit to seven, 45-38, by the 4:40 point of the frame. Minato netted four of the Black Knights' final seven points, including two free-throws with nine seconds left to close out the win.

Army returns to action on Wednesday, Feb. 10, when the Black Knights make the trip to Hamilton, N.Y., to face Colgate at 7 p.m.

GAME NOTES: Army wins its sixth in a row versus Loyola to improve to 7-4 all-time against the Greyhounds … the win marks the Black Knights' ninth in a row … Minato reached double digits for the 101st game in a row … Minato increased her team scoring record to 2,307 career points … she moves to within 19 points of passing Kevin Houston's (USMA '87) Academy scoring record of 2,325 … Army improves to 4-1 this season when trailing at halftime (Loyola led 22-19 at the half) … the Black Knights outscored the Greyhounds, 34-16, inside the paint.