Lady Mustangs Get 10th Win of the Season

Bethesda led 4-2 just 54 seconds into the game.

It was the last lead they would enjoy.

Four players scored in double figures and everyone played in the game as The Master's University women's basketball team defeated the Bethesda Flames 94-61 Saturday afternoon in a non-conference contest in The MacArthur Center.

For the second game in a row, the Lady Mustangs (10-2, 3-2) shot over 50% from the field (36-of-70) and controlled the boards 54-29 to get the 33-point win.

"Offensively, I think we continued with where we've been," said Head Coach Lisa Zamroz. "A lot of different people were getting touches, so we were very unselfish with the ball which is always great to see. Defensively we didn't meet our goal, which was to hold them to 35. In the second half we didn't adjust to the way the fouls were being called. We just continued to play defense the same way and as a result we sent them to the free throw line and gave them more opportunity than necessary."

The Flames were 16-of-21 from the charity stripe, with 16 of those 21 attempts coming in the second half.

TMU's 17-point lead after the first quarter extended to 30 points by halftime (50-20). The lead got as high as 39 during the third quarter in what was the final game before the Christmas break.

Ella Brubaker led the team with 25 points in just 20 minutes of playing time. Belle Hernandez poured in 20 with Faith Brinkman jumping off the bench and getting a career-high 13 points after hitting 3-of-5 from 3-point range.

"I think for a freshman coming in, you really need time and attention to understand what's different between the level you came from and the next level," Zamroz said when asked about Brinkman. "To have her get a rhythm offensively just really shows what she's capable of. We know she's got some deep range, but as she continues to get time on the court we will continue to see her potential and the type pf player she can become."

Lexi Hernandez led the team in both rebounds (13) and assists (eight), while Jayla Julmist collected a double-double getting 10 points to go with her 10 rebounds.

"Lexi and Jayla were great inside and that's important for them," Zamroz said. "It gets them going offensively and gets their confidence up so they can produce on the other end as well. We really need them inside to limit the other team to one shot."

The Master's will be back in action on Dec. 29 as they host Northern New Mexico at 5 p.m. On Saturday, Dec. 31, they will host No. 7 Dakota Wesleyan at 1 p.m. in the final non-conference game before the remainder of the GSAC schedule kicks in.