Cardinals Fall to Calvin

GRAND RAPIDS -- An early-season problem has cropped up for the Saginaw Valley State University women's basketball team – free throw shooting.
     The Lady Cardinals dropped to 1-2 on the season after an 86-74 loss to NCAA Division III Calvin College in the Grand Rapids Press Tournament Friday night.
     SVSU did not miss a free throw in the game, but attempted only one, while the Knights sank 24 of 32 charity tosses, including 20 of 24 in the second half.
     "We didn't play good team defense and gave them a lot of second chance opportunities," said second-year coach Lori Flaherty.
     Calvin led by as many as 15 points in the first half before the Cardinals rallied to cut the lead to 38-35 at haltime.
     The Cards would get not closer than five points in the second half as Calvin held them at bay with solid free throw shooting and 53 percent floor shooting.
     Opponents have mad 66 of 91 free throws in three games while the Cardinals have made 13 of 21.
     Senior center Andrea Jones (Swartz Creek) had another stellar game, despite foul trouble. She nearly posted her second-straight triple-double, finishing with 13 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists.
     Senior Jill Herbig (Hamilton) led SVSU with 20 points, while senior Sue Karber (Grosse Point/North) scored 19. Freshman Erin Johnson (Saginaw/Heritage) had her first collegiate double-figure performance with 10 points and sophomore Jenny White (Oxford) scored eight points and dished out six assists.
     Robyn Fennema scored 20 of her game-high 29 points in the first half for Calvin, and added 13 rebounds. Kendra Toonstra chipped in 17 points.
     SVSU shot only 40 percent from the floor and was out-rebounded 43-39.
     The defending tournament champion Cardinals will play in the consolation game against Cornerstone College at 3 p.m. Saturday.

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