Big first half sparks Storm victory at Coe

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Regan Freland notched a new career-high scoring mark, Jenna Taylor logged another double-double, and two others scored in double figures to lead the Simpson College women's basketball team to a 91-71 conference win over Coe on Saturday.

The No. 14 Storm (6-1, 2-0 A-R-C) used a 54-point first half to boast a big lead over the Kohawks (3-5, 0-3 A-R-C) at intermission and continued to build on their lead in the final 20 minutes, leading by as many as 28 midway through the third quarter. Simpson shot 52.5 percent from the floor, 41.2 percent from deep, and 87.5 percent from the free throw line while holding Coe's offense to 41.8 percent, 31.8 percent and 53.3 percent shooting clips, respectively.

Freland scored half of her 18 points in the first quarter to pace Simpson to a 34-19 advantage through 10 minutes. The Storm led 16-14 before rattling off an 18-5 run fueled by eight points from Cassie Nash in the final 2:52 of the frame. In the second quarter, Simpson made 4-of-7 three-point attempts to outscore the Kohawks 20-12. Jenna Taylor had two threes, while Freland and Hattie Rhodes each chipped in one.

Simpson opened the second half on a 9-4 spurt capped off by a three-point play from Cameron Kincaid to claim its largest lead of the afternoon at 63-35. Coe managed to outscore the Storm 36-28 the rest of the way, but never trimmed the deficit closer than 15 points as Simpson's first-half cushion was too much to overcome.

Taylor scored a game-high 22 points and brought down 10 rebounds for her second double-double of the year. She shot over 60.0 percent for the fourth time this season and also had a career-high seven assists.

Kincaid hit the 20-point mark for the first time this season thanks to 66.7 percent shooting from the floor (6-9) and a perfect night at the stripe (8-8). Freland knocked down three triples and finished the night with a career-high 18 points, and Nash had 13 points while ranking second on the team with six boards.

The Storm outscored the Kohawks 52-32 in the paint, had a six-point advantage in second chance points, and turned the home team's 14 miscues into 23 points.

Up Next
Simpson plays Drake in an exhibition contest on Tuesday before continuing conference action against Wartburg on Saturday. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m. inside Cowles Fieldhouse.