High-flying first half
NDC dominates first stanza, wins 73-59 at Houghton
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HOUGHTON, N.Y. – Notre Dame defeated Houghton College (NY) Saturday, 73-59. The road victory for NDC preserves their second place standing in the North Division of the American Mideast Conference (AMC) and closes out a back-to-back series in upstate New York. Notre Dame was defeated by Roberts Wesleyan, now just a game behind NDC in the North standings, on Friday.

The Falcons (19-6, 9-3) dominated play in the opening period, opening up a 21-point lead by halftime. The advantage eroded by seven points in the second, but in the end Notre Dame came away with their first victory in their last three contests. Junior guard Ashley Carney (Solon, OH) led the Falcons in scoring on the afternoon. The veteran guard hit four treys as part of a 16-point, five-assist performance. All five NDC starters notched double figures in scoring for the game.

The Highlanders and Falcons traded baskets for the first five minutes of play in the first. Sophomore guard Amanda Brown (Vienna, VA) then started and ended an seven-minute 20-2 run. A layup by Brown at 14:04 and a three-ball at 6:50 served as bookends on the run that vaulted the Falcons into a lead that would hang near 20 points the rest of the game.

Brown finished with 11 points, seven assists, and an NDC single-game-record-tying eight steals. The Falcons outshot the Highlanders 47.4 percent (18-for-38) to 29.0 percent (9-for-31) in the first. Their 21-point lead (44-23) at halftime marks their second largest lead through 20 minutes in a game this season.

NDC built that lead to as much as 25 in the second before losing ground over the final minutes of the game.

For the afternoon, NDC shot 45.2 percent (28-for-62), their best single-game shooting performance since Jan. 23. Joining Carney and Baker in double figures in the scoring column were junior guard Molly Baker (Avon Lake, OH), junior forward Jamie Henry (Garfield Heights, OH), and freshman center Yvette Hunter (Jamestown, NY). Baker scored 11 and added a team-high eight boards and six steals. Henry scored 12, and Hunter scored 13. NDC was out-rebounded, 42-38.

Houghton (14-10, 7-5) shot 38.3 percent (23-for-60) for the game. The Highlanders were led by Ashley Dupler (Fr/Jamestown, NY) who scored a game-high 23 points, while pulling down 11 rebounds.

The win sends Notre Dame into the final week of the regular season holding onto second place in their division. NDC will close out its AMC slate with a pair of home games this week. They'll host Malone College Tuesday, Feb. 19, and North-leading Daemen College (NY) on Saturday, Feb. 23. Tip off in Tuesday's game at Murphy Gymnasium is slated for 6:00pm. The game will be aired tape-delay on SportsTime Ohio (STO) Wednesday, Feb. 20, at 2:00pm.

NOTES FROM THE NEST...

SERIES: With Saturday's win in Houghton, NDC sweeps the season series between the two programs. The Falcons defeated the Highlanders, 79-59, on Jan. 19. Notre Dame has now won seven of their last eight against Houghton.

STEALING TIES: Amanda Brown's eight thefts Saturday ties a program record set by Sarah Dia (Sr/Parma, OH) last season (Feb. 3, 2007 at Roberts-NY). The Falcons finished the weekend with 40 steals (they had 21 against Roberts on Friday). Saturday's caused turnovers loomed large - NDC outscored HC on points off turnovers, 30-20.

CINCH TO CLINCH: With the win and the season sweep of Houghton, who is two games behind NDC in the North standings, the Falcons clinched a postseason berth. The top five teams from both the North and South advance to the AMC postseason, which begins Mar. 27. Fourth place in the North is the worst the Falcons can finish, with two games remaining. ... The 2008 AMC Postseason will be the fifth straight for NDC Women's Basketball.