Peel Leads Tartans with Double-Double in Defeat at Case Western

(CLEVELAND, Ohio) - The best first half of the season for the Carnegie Mellon University women's basketball team was not quite enough as Case Western Reserve University upended the Tartans in the second half for the 88-73 win. The Tartans finish the regular season at 13-12, earning its first winning season since 2002-03, and 5-9 in University Athletic Association play.

The Tartans scored 45 points in the first half, tying a season-high, after shooting 62.1% from the field, opening with a 22-10 run where they hit 9-of-10 from the field.

Case Western climbed back to within two points at 22-20 at the 12:18 mark, prompting a timeout by the Tartans. Following the timeout, the Tartans scored on four straight possessions to go ahead 31-22 before allowing Case to pull it back to a two-point game four minutes later with 6:33 to go, turning the ball over on five straight possessions.

The Tartans were able to keep the lead and a three-pointer by sophomore Chandler Caufield (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny) gave them a 39-31 advantage with 5:18 to play in the period.

Case did end the half on a 12-6 run but the Tartans still led by two, 45-43, at the break.

Senior Emily Peel (Long Valley, N.J./West Morris Central) and freshman Liza Otto (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury) were behind the high shooting percentage for the Tartans as they shot 5-of-7 and 5-of-6 from the field, respectively.

Case tightened up its half-court defense in the second half and started the period with a 10-0 run taking its first lead of the game on a fast-break layup by Erica Iafelice.

The Tartans scored their first hoop of the period when freshman Lindsay Poss (Poolesville, Md./Poolesville) drilled a long-distance basket at the 17:38 mark.

An 8-2 answer from the Spartans gave the home team its first double-digit advantage at 61-50 with three-quarters of the half to play.

Case went on to shoot 50% from the field for the half and shot 20-for-20 from the free throw line for the game to seal the 88-73 season-ending win. The Tartans shot just 28.6% in the second period and 43.8% for the game.

Peel led the Tartans with 23 points and 10 rebounds on 69% shooting. Sophomore Gabrielle West (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) tallied 16 points while Otto finished with 13 and Poss 12. Junior Jacquie Shaw (Portland, Ore./Grant) finished with a team-high five assists while grabbing six defensive boards.

The Spartans were led by seniors Evy Iacono's 23 points and Marissa Miles' 22 points.