Storm cruise past Marian, Niemuth notches 650th win

DUBUQUE, Iowa – The Simpson College women's basketball team raced out to an early lead and never looked back, defeating Marian 96-39 on the second day of the Loras Tip-Off Classic.

In addition to the win being Simpson's first of the year, the victory was No. 650 for head coach Brian Niemuth. He's the 16th coach in NCAA Division III history to reach the milestone and currently ranks seventh among active DIII coaches in career wins.

The Storm (1-1) had four players score in double-digits led by Molly Lutmer with a game-high 18. Haley Rasmussen was close behind with 16, while Anna Wanek (11) and Khloe Wyatt (10) combined for 21. Four other players had six or more points as 14 players scored in the victory.

Cassie Nash led the rebounding effort with a career-high 12. She was one assist shy of a double-double, with her nine helpers also being a career-high.

Simpson used a 17-0 scoring run over the course of five minutes to build a 21-6 advantage with 2:16 left in the first. The Storm held Marian (0-3) without a field goal for the final seven minutes of the half while pouring in 24 points on their end for a 49-17 halftime lead. Rasmussen led the way for Simpson in the first half, scoring 10 points on 4 of 7 shooting.

The Storm offense didn't let up in the second half, converting 16 of 29 shots from the floor and 6 of 13 from deep. Lutmer had three triples and a jumper, Maddax DeVault scored eight points, and Rasmussen and Lexi Seymore both chipped in six.

The team finished the game with a 59.0 percent shooting clip from the floor, Simpson's highest since shooting 60.0 percent in a win over Loras last November. The Storm outrebounded the Sabres 46-30.

Up Next
Simpson takes on Gustavus Adolphus on the road Wednesday before welcoming Wisconsin-Superior to Cowles Fieldhouse for the team's home opener on Nov. 19.