MOSCOW, Idaho—The Vandal women's basketball team closed 2014 on a high note on Saturday night. Idaho used eight three-point field goals in the first half to gain a 21-point halftime-lead on its way to a 74-48 win over the Lewis-Clarks State Warriors at the Cowan Spectrum.
Six different players hit shots from behind the arc in the first 20 minutes for the Vandals. Junior Christina Salvatore drilled three three's in the half, bumping her into second on Idaho's all-time career list. She now only trails senior Stacey Barr, who added another two three-pointers to her school record that now stands at 223. Not to be outdone, junior Ali Forde got into the fun with her first-career three point field goal.
“I loved our focus this week in practice,” head coach Jon Newlee said following the win. “I really thought we would come out focused and ready to play tonight. We wanted to get out and attack right from the start. We wanted to assert ourselves defensively as well.”
Geraldine McCorkell led all scorers with 18 points. She was 8-for-10 from the floor. McCorkell totaled five points in the first five minutes of the half. The Vandals opened the first 4:41 on a 15-0 run. The Warriors did not get on the scoreboard until the 14:24 mark of the first half.
“Geri has all the potential in the world,” Salvatore noted. “Sometimes she sells herself short. Lately she has been playing great. She great inside, she is a great shooter, a great rebounder and a great passer. She does all those things really well. She is awesome to play with.”
“The start of the season was not very great [for me],” McCorkell commented. “The last two games [19 and 18 points, respectively] have really boosted my confidence.”
Kelli Rice finally got LCSC's first points of the night, but over the next 9:16 Idaho would outscore the Warriors 23-6. Salvatore, Brooke Reilly, Forde and Connie Ballestero all hit three's to boost Idaho to a 32-point lead at 38-6 with 5:08 to play.
Idaho (6-5) matched its performance at No. 9 Baylor with 10 three-pointers on the night. The 58 rebounds was the second best total of the season, behind the 70 totaled against Multnomah. Reilly was the only player to snag double-digit boards. Her 14 rebounds led all players and bested her previous career-best of 11.
11 different Vandals recorded points on Saturday, with 42 points coming off the bench. Karlee Wilson had the best offensive night of her career. She finished with 11 points and five assists. Wilson successfully got the free-throw line on eight occasions, converting on a career- high seven of her attempts. Forde and Salvatore each finished with nine points. Salvatore added nine rebounds, while Forde cleaned up the glass with six boards. Nejra Solo saw her first extended playing time of the season, she totaled six points and four rebounds in her seven minutes on the court.
A pair of Wilson free-throws with 3:41 to play gave Idaho its largest lead of the game at 73-38. LCSC closed the final 3:28 on a 10-1 run to cut the Vandal lead down to 26. Caelyn Orlandi led the Warriors with 12 points, while Tanis Fuller added 11 points.
Idaho will be back in action on New Year's Day against Idaho State. The Vandals begin Big Sky play on the road for the first three games before returning to Cowan Spectrum on Jan. 15 against Sacramento State.
