COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Capital University women's basketball team hosted their season opener on Wednesday night against the College of Wooster, defeating the Fighting Scots by a score of 63-51.
A huge second and fourth quarter that saw Capital hold Wooster to single-digit scoring in both stanzas helped make the difference in the final score. In the second 10 minutes of action, Capital outscored the Scots 15-6, despite a few struggles offensively. In the final frame, the Comets once again scored 15, and held Wooster to just nine, sealing their win.
The early season win pushes Capital to 1-0 for the first time to start a year since the 2018-19 season. Wooster begins their season at 0-1.
The Comets were led in the scoring column by a 25-point career-high from
Emma Burns. The senior sharpshooter shot an efficient 56% from the floor on 10-of-18 shooting. She was 60% from beyond the arc on 3-of-5. Rounding out her sharp shooting on the evening, Emma knocked down both of her two free throw attempts. Emma balanced out her opening night stats with two rebounds and two assists.
The 25 points for Burns marked her career-best. She had hit 20+ in scoring four times previously in her career, twice as a sophomore and twice as a freshman, but tonight's effort surpassing all four of those totals.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Comets pulled away early in the first quarter thanks to shooting 50 percent from the field. They also capitalized on Fighting Scots mistakes, scoring six points off of turnovers and seven from the fast break, prompting a 22-17 lead at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter came with more of the same. Capital outscored Wooster 15-6 with the help of 12 points in the paint and would carry a 37-23 lead into halftime.
The tide turned slightly in the second half with Wooster making a few short runs to pull the game within a few points. However, the Comets would quickly respond with runs of their own. The third quarter would end with the score 48-42 in favor of Capital. The final period was all Comets as they broke out with a nine-point scoring run to start the fourth quarter. This would be the last blow as the scoreboard read 63-51 in favor of Capital when the final buzzer sounded.
THE NUMBERS
Overall, Capital shot at a 46% conversion rate, led by Burns' 25 points. Supporting her efforts in scoring were freshman
Nicole Flock and senior
Brooke Ommert who each had nine points.
Maddie Dougoud added eight as well. Capital had eight bench points as
Demi Brewer and
Maddy Reese each chipped in four points.
Dougoud led the team in boards with seven, three of which came on the offensive glass. Brewer and freshman
Laney Murphy each contributed five boards in the game.
Analyzing the scoring, Capital made their mark in the paint, pouring in 30 points within the key. Additionally, Cap made the fast-break count, scoring 15 on the counter. Of Wooster's 14 turnovers, Capital scored 14 points. The Comets held the advantage in all three categories, more than doubling Wooster's tally in points in the paint and fast break points.
Capital certainly shared the ball with 17 assists. Flock, Ommert, Murphy and Brewer all had three helpers to lead the team.
The Scots were led in scoring by a pair of 12-point games from Masani Francis and Harley Holloway. Alyssa Chritz had a team-best six rebounds. Francis had a game-high four assists.
UP NEXT
Capital will return to action this Saturday, November 13th as they host Illinois Wesleyan. Tipoff in the Capital Center will be at 4 p.m. following the conclusion of the senior day football game being played in Bernlohr Stadium at 1:30 p.m.
