Fourth Quarter Propels Delta to Win

University Center – The Delta College women's basketball team started off the conference portion of their season the way they intended - with a solid defensive effort – in a 78-58 win over visiting Alpena on Wednesday.  The Pioneers now stand at 6-6 on the season and 1-0 in the MCCAA.

"Coming back from Christmas break we focused more on conditioning and defense and tonight it showed," said head coach Kelly Miller.

DC held the Lumberjacks under 15 points three out of the four quarters including the game changing fourth quarter.  With the score 48-44 in favor of Alpena entering the final stanza, Delta quickly turned the tide by going on a 9-0 to take the lead and then another 12-0 run to push the lead to double digits.  Alpena wouldn't recover as Delta outscored them 34-10 in the quarter with most of their offense being generated by their defense.

"In the huddle we talked about picking up our defensive intensity and once the quarter started we did just that," said Miller.

The Pioneers went deep onto their bench in the win, using every foul they could afford with their defensive pressure. 

"Having some of our key players in foul trouble forced us to play some lineups that we wouldn't typically have out there together…but it helped those girls gain some game confidence and see what they can do when called upon."

Jenna Szostak and Harmany Williams led all scorers with 19 apiece while Ashley Lee and Brianna Herner each added 10.  Szostak also led the team in rebounds with eight while Lauren Rogers collected seven.   

Delta next plays on Saturday as they host Wayne County in a MCCAA Eastern conference tilt.  The Pioneers swept the series against Wayne last year and have won twenty in a row in the series.  Tip off is 1pm.