Women's basketball team beats Concordia, 58-50, in the Comet Classic

The women's basketball team came back from a seven-point deficit early in the second half to defeat Concordia University, 58-50, tonight in a first round game of the 2004 Comet Classic at the Upton Center in Olivet.

In the other game, Northwood University beat Alma College, 58-50. Sunday's games feature Concordia versus Alma at 1 p.m., followed by Northwood versus Olivet.

In the first half, the Lady Comets (3-1) trailed by as many as nine points with 1:31 left. The Cardinals held at 24-21 lead at halftime. Concordia then built a 29-22 lead at the 19:17 mark of the second half. The Comets used a 7-0 run to tie the game.

After Olivet senior Essence Porter (Battle Creek/Central) trimmed the deficit to two points, senior Emily Fix (New Buffalo/Comstock Park) nailed back-to-back three-pointers to give Olivet the lead for good, 39-35, with 13:29 remaining. From that point, the Comets' biggest lead was 10 points, 51-41.

Freshman Jaime Kowalczyk (Wyandotte-Roosevelt) scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead Olivet. Senior Tonya Dawson (Marshall) chipped in with 10 points, followed by Fix with eight. Freshman Amy Brackenwagen (Grand Ledge) contributed a team-high nine steals.

For the Cardinals, Richelle Gerstenberger had a team-high 13 points and nine rebounds. Katie Schwieger also scored in double digits with 12 points.

Following tomorrow's game, Olivet is idle until Saturday, Dec. 4, when it opens Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association play at home against Saint Mary's (Ind.) College. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.