Defense propels Storm to season sweep over Dutch

INDIANOLA, Iowa – The Simpson women's basketball team's defense seemed to be its best offense as it held Central to 28 percent shooting en route to a 62-49 victory on Wednesday night.

The Storm picked up their 26th straight win in the series with their last loss coming in 2002.

It was slow going for the Dutch (9-11, 1-8 Iowa Conference) in the first half thanks to the Storm's 2-3 lockdown defense. They managed just 12 points on 4 of 24 shooting, including zero field goals in the game's first nine minutes. Leading scorer Kenzie Vander Molen (16.4 ppg) was held scoreless in the first 20 minutes.

Simpson (12-8, 7-2) utilized 14 Dutch turnovers and transformed them into 16 points as it led at half, 27-12.

Central managed to outscore the Storm in the second half but it went for naught as Simpson maintained a lead that hovered around 15 points throughout.

The defense kept the Dutch's main scoring threat under wraps as Vander Molen managed just 11 points on 1 of 8 shooting, turning the ball over four times. Courtney Kelderman led the team in scoring with 13 points.

Morgan Mauro was an all-purpose threat in racking up 15 points on 5 of 9 shooting from 3-point land, dishing out four assists, and grabbing four rebounds. Senior Morgan Terpstra continued her scoring tear - 15.3 points per game last six games - compiling 15 points to go along with eight rebounds and three assists.

On the defensive side Whitney Van Wyk was a key cog of Simpson's stifling defense with a game-high six steals to go along with her six points.

With the win Simpson maintains its hold on sole possession of second place in the Iowa Conference standings, two games behind league leader Loras (9-0).

The Simpson women host Dubuque this Saturday in Cowles Fieldhouse at 2 p.m. Dubuque hopes to avenge a 55-54 buzzer-beating loss at home, courtesy of Markayla Mahr on Jan. 29. The Spartans (13-7, 6-3) won at Wartburg on Wednesday night, 60-40.