Published: December 03, 2008 04:09 pm      

East Central women finish Classic sweep

Ada — Casi Rawls poured in 20 points, hustled for seven rebounds and dished out four assists as the East Central University Lady Tigers bombed St. Gregory’s University 84-50 Saturday to wrap up play in their own ECU Thanksgiving Classic on Wayne Cobb Court inside the Kerr Activities Center.

Rawls, a sophomore guard, was only 5-of-14 from the field overall, but did manage to sink 5-of-9 tries from 3-point range while nailing 5-of-6 free throws as ECU improved to 2-0 in the early season.

The Lady Tigers, who led from start to finish, shot 47.5 percent from the floor while limiting the Lady Cavaliers, 1-5, to 26.8 percent shooting on the day. SGU had only 15 field goals in the contest.

ECU senior guard Kacey Thomas finished with a double-double as she tallied 16 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. She was 7-of-13 from the field and also handed out a pair of assists and recorded a steal.

Sophomore guard Laura Harris, who scored a career-high 21 points in the season-opening 75-31 rout of Hillsdale Baptist on Friday, followed with 12 points Saturday as she was 4-of-6 from the floor, including 3-of-4 from 3-point territory, to go along with three assists and four boards.

The Lady Tigers also received nine points (including two treys), a team-leading five assists and two steals out of senior guard Veronica Valles. Danielle Cox chipped in eight points and redshirt freshman Kiley Scrivner tacked on seven.

ECU had 21 assists in the game while committing 13 turnovers.

Abby Wolf topped the Lady Cavaliers with 12 points, though she was only 3-of-13 from the field with one 3-pointer. Leviatta McCullough added 10 points in a losing cause.

SGU also had 13 turnovers.

The Lady Tigers raced out to an 8-2 advantage, led 15-5 through the first five minutes and had a 39-8 lead after a Rawls 3-pointer with 6:20 to go before halftime.

Another Rawls trey, which made it 43-11 with 4:24 left before the break, and a Cox layup with 3:02 to go before halftime, were the biggest first-half advantages for ECU.

ECU’s next action will be Tuesday at Southwestern Christian in Bethany at 5:30 p.m. The Lady Tigers then go to Angelo State on Saturday, Dec. 6.