MCPHERSON, Kan. — Southwestern College led wire to wire and survived a frantic fourth-quarter push to beat Central Christian College 62-57 on Saturday afternoon. The Lady Builders improved to 2-1; the Tigers fell to 2-2.
First quarter: Southwestern 17, Central Christian 13 (+4)
Southwestern set the tone early with second-chance points and turnovers converted at the rim to take a 17-13 lead after 10 minutes. Martha De La Rosa and Kennedy Ford keyed the opening stretch, and Macey Pond scored late in the period to keep the margin at four.
Second quarter: Southwestern 14, Central Christian 9 (+5)
The Builders tightened defensively, holding the Tigers to nine points and pushing the halftime lead to 31-22. De La Rosa hit a wing 3-pointer and assisted sister Aubrey Pond on a paint finish during a 7-0 burst. Central Christian was whistled for a bench technical with 3:13 left in the half.
Third quarter: Southwestern 15, Central Christian 9 (+6)
Southwestern pulled away out of the break, extending the cushion to 46-31. Macey Pond buried a right-slot 3 and scored twice inside, while Emma Parker chipped in two buckets to help build a 17-point edge late in the frame.
Fourth quarter: Central Christian 26, Southwestern 16 (-10)
Central Christian made it tight, pouring in 26 points behind guard Chloe Clevenger, who finished with 21 and five 3-pointers. The Tigers trimmed a 52-32 deficit to 58-57 on Clevenger's deep 3 with 25 seconds left. Macey Pond answered at the line, going 6 for 6 in the final 23 seconds to close it out.
Pond led Southwestern with 25 points on 8-of-16 shooting and 7-of-8 free throws, adding eight rebounds. De La Rosa scored 13, and Ford had 11 points, eight rebounds and three steals. Aubrey Pond added six points and seven boards.
Southwestern shot 41.8 percent (23 of 55), went 5 of 17 from 3 and 11 of 16 at the line, including 9 of 10 in the fourth. The Builders outrebounded the Tigers 40-31 and owned a 32-16 advantage in the paint. Central Christian shot 35.7 percent (20 of 56) but hit 11 of 28 from 3. Charmayne Marshall added 16 points for the Tigers.
Up next: Southwestern visits Cottey College on Wednesday, Nov. 12, at 5:30 p.m. in Nevada, Mo.
