KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan University women's basketball team defeated Cleary University 70-48 Wednesday afternoon. In the victory, graduate student guard Hannah Spitzley dominated on both ends of the court scoring a game-high 19 points behind an efficient 7-12 shooting display. Spitzley would also grab seven rebounds, tally three assists, three blocks, and collect one steal in the win.
During the first quarter Wednesday, The Brown and Gold limited Cleary to four points and 16.67% from the field. The freshman forward D'Myjah Bolds led all scorers with a quarter-high four points through the first 10 minutes of play.
In the second frame, WMU caught fire and scored 22 points behind a scoring distribution of five Broncos. A layup by sophomore Evyn Carrier with 3:38 remaining in the half increased WMU's lead to a quarter-high 20-point advantage. Entering the halftime break, the women's basketball team saw a comfortable 17-point buffer.
After the break, Cleary opened the third with an 8-0 scoring run and cut WMU's lead to 32-23 with 6:48 remaining in the quarter. The Brown and Gold responded by capitalizing on miscues by Cleary and bounced back with a run of their own: The Broncos outscored the Cougars 16-10 over the following five minutes to take a 48-33 lead with under one minute to play in the frame.
In the fourth and final quarter, WMU dominated on both sides of the court and outscored the Cougars 22-9. After entering the quarter with a nine-point lead, the women's basketball team used the next six and a half minutes to distance themselves even further from the Cougars and build a 16-point advantage after a layup from freshman Vinyet Morato. The Broncos led by as many as 23 points in the fourth quarter, compliments to a balanced scoring attack of Spitzley, Marina Asensio, Morato, Alli Harness, and Bolds.
The Alli Duo Debuts
The freshman guard Harness made her Bronco debut Wednesday, supplying an efficient nine points (3-5 FG) over the span of 10 minutes. Harness would also grab one rebound and add two steals in the win.
In her first game back on the court this season after returning from injury, junior Alli Carlson tied a game-high three steals, while adding four assists in her 2024-25 debut.
Audino Returns
After missing the entire 2023-24 season due to injury, senior center Lauren Audino made her 2024-25 home debut against the Cougars. In nine minutes of play, Audino scored an efficient eight points and grabbed both a steal and a rebound while dishing out one assist.
Tip-Ins
Bolds grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds and secured the first double-digit rebounding effort of her early Bronco career.
Historical Notes
Graduate student guard Megan Wagner dished out three assists in the victory and passed Ann Kasdorf (1975-78) for the 17th most career assists recorded by a Bronco.
As for the graduate student Spitzley, she became the 19th Bronco in program history to hit at least 90 career three-pointers.
Up Next
On Wednesday, December 4, The Brown and Gold will travel to Valparaiso, Indiana to take on Valparaiso University. Game time is scheduled for 7:00 PM ET and will be available on ESPN+.
