Cardinal Skid Hits Seven

MARQUETTE - Saginaw Valley State University was no match for No. 13-ranked Northern Michigan University Saturday, falling by a score of 87-51.
     The teams had a stalemate in the second half, each scoring 32 points, after the Wildcats built a 55-19 halftime lead. SVSU shot only 26 percent from the floor in the first 20 minutes while the hosts were sinking 63 percent.
     The Lady Cardinals had no answer for Shasha Leverentz, the league's leading scorer, who pumped in 32 points, including 24 in the first half. Jill Golbert scored 12 of her 15 points in the period for NMU and finished with a game-high six rebounds.
     "Shasha had a great game," admitted second-year Cardinal Coach Lori Flaherty. "We played better in the second half, but we struggled again in the first half."
     Senior Jill Herbig (Hamilton) led SVSU in scoring for the 14th straight game, but had her lowest point total in two months. She finished with 15 points, while sophomore Jenny White (Oxford) added 13 points. Senior Andrea Jones (Swartz Creek) had a team-high five rebounds as the Cardinals were out-boarded 40-23.
     Northern Michigan improved to 18-3 overall and shares first place in the GLIAC North Division with a 13-2 mark.
     The Lady Cardinals dropped to 8-14 overall and 4-11 in the league. They will try to halt a school-record seven-game losing streak Monday night when they host local rival Northwood University to kick off a season-ending four-game home stand.

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