ROCKETS TOPPLE KENT STATE FOR BIG WIN

Toledo, OH – It was “Rockets for the Cure” Day at Savage Arena and 4,519 fans answered the call to come out and cheer on the Toledo Rocket women, as well as support Susan G. Komen for the Cure of Northwest Ohio, an organization that raises funds for breast cancer research.

The Rockets, decked out in their pink uniforms, took the measure of the visitors, 66-53, to strengthen their position as the MAC West. The cancer fund raiser was also a big success.

UT was going head-to-head with the Kent State Golden Flashes in a big cross-division match up that featured the leaders of their respective divisions. Toledo and Kent were both 6-1 in conference play, with the Rockets coming off a huge 66-65 win against rival Bowling Green on Wednesday at venerable Anderson Arena. Kent entered the Toledo game following a hard-fought 56-54 overtime win against Northern Illinois on the road.

Pink was the dominant color in the arena but the mood may have been blue for Kent State Head Coach Bob Lindsay and his team, especially in the first-half as Toledo finished the period with a 20-point, 39-19 lead.

Kent State began the game on a high note, racing out to a 9-4 lead before Melissa Goodall scored five consecutive points on a trey and two free throws to knot things up.

Toledo had a 15-12 lead with just under 10 minutes to play when Andola Dortch stole the ball from Kent’s Jamiliah Humes and fed Haylie Linn who out ran a defender for a layup.

Linn’s basket ignited an 18-3 Rocket run that soon had Toledo comfortably ahead, 35-15. The score was 39-19 as the teams went into the locker room for intermission Naama Shafir had 11 points in the first period and she was aided by Goodall and Jessica Williams who had seven and six points respectively.

The Rocket’s “Pittsburgh Steeler” defense that was so effective in the win over Bowling Green, played a prominent role in Toledo’s first-half mastery over KSU, limiting the visitors to just seven field goals on 26 attempts (26.9 percent).

Shafir opened the second half by canning a trey, and when Courtney Ingersoll hit a pair of baskets for a 46-26 lead, it looked as if UT would continue its assault on Kent State.

But the Flashes can also play defense, and Bob Lindsay didn't become the dean of MAC coaches using sleight-of-hand and mirrors. Playing their own brand of hard-nosed ball, Kent twice cut the Toledo lead to nine points, 57-48 and 59-50, in the last four minutes of the game before UT converted on four free throws to put the game out of reach with 1:38 to play.

Kent’s second half surge was fueled by senior Ellie Shields who came off the bench to score 10 second-half points. As a freshman center Shields, subbing for an injured starter, scored 31 points against Toledo on Jan. 30, 2008 when a very short-handed KSU team defeated the Rockets, 87-61 at Kent. This writer was a witness to that game and when Shields began scoring to cut into the Rocket lead, there was definitely a feeling of déjà vu. But this is another era, another Toledo coach, and there are just two seniors on the present team who were part of that loss.

The Flashes got the bulk of their point production from three seniors: Taisja Jones, 16 points; Humes, 13 points; and Shields, 10 points. After shooting so miserably in the first half, Kent came out and found the bottom of the net on 13-of-23 tries for 56.5 percent.

The Rockets were led in scoring by Shafir, 16 points and Goodall, 11 points. Also stepping up for Toledo were Andola Dortch (9 points) Williams (8 points), and Ingersoll and Lecretia Smith who each netted seven points.

Goodall had seven rebounds to lead Toledo on the glass, followed by Smith and Yolanda Richardson who had five caroms each. Richardson was forced to leave the game, and the arena, in the second half after taking an elbow to the face, and never returned to the bench.

In addition to her scoring, Ingersoll stepped up big to grab two key offensive rebounds, dish out three assists, and record three steals.

“Last year we lost to Kent State after beating Bowling Green so this is a big win because it helps keep our momentum going,” said Melissa Goodall. “It feels good to be the top team in the conference but we can't be complacent about that because everyone will be out to get us.”

“I was very proud of our effort,” Tricia Cullop told the media in the post-game press conference. “It took a little while for us to get into our rhythm but I really thought our first-half defense was outstanding. I knew it was going to take a forty-minute effort to beat this team.”

With Saturday's win, Toledo now sits in the cat-bird seat as far as determining their destiny come tournament time With wins over East leaders Kent and Bowling Green and and a road victory over Eastern Michigan, if The Rockets can grab a few more wins on the road and win out at Savage Arena, then they'll have a great chance of being the number one seed in Cleveland.

The Midnight Blue and Gold now prepares for a road contest against the Akron Zips on Wednesday, Feb.2.