ABILENE – Abilene Christian women's basketball overcame a 7-0 deficit and put on an offensive clinic with 28 points in the third quarter to present head coach
Julie Goodenough with her 400th career victory, as the Wildcats rolled to a 74-60 victory over one of the pioneering programs of women's basketball.
The Old Dominion Lady Monarchs, which in their 48-year history have won more than 1,000 games, produced several WNBA talents, qualified for 25 NCAA Tournaments and advanced to three Final Fours, dropped to 1-11 following today's loss, while the Wildcats – winners of 818 games since their inception – improved to 6-4.
Sophomore guard Breanna Wright led all Wildcats with 18 points, followed by Sara Williamson (13 points) and Sierra Allen (10 points). Freshman Makayla Mabry came off the bench to lead ACU with six rebounds and one block, while Wright and Williamson shared the team lead with five assists.
ODU started the game with a 7-0 lead as the Wildcats didn't record their first bucket until the 8:15 mark when Wright hit the first of her five field goals. Allen and Wright later hit consecutive 3-pointers to get ACU within a point of the lead, and down the stretch the team tied the score three times to enter the first stoppage knotted at 16-16.
Layups from Wright, Mabry and Williamson within the first two minutes of the second quarter allowed the Wildcats to take a 30-26 lead into halftime, and after the break, ACU turned the game on its head thanks to a 28-point, third-quarter outburst.
The Wildcats scored five points on its first two trips down the court and Wright netted a 3-pointer to give ACU its first 10-point lead of the game at 7:22. The Wildcats made three additional 3-pointers during the quarter, including one by freshman Josie Larson that gave ACU a 58-34 lead entering the fourth.
Allen, Williamson and Wright all totaled eight points in the second half, and Larson was close behind with seven points. The Wildcats' second half additionally featured a 57.1 shooting percentage (12-of-21), five 3-point baskets and a 15-of-18 showing from the free-throw line.
Goodenough has won 111 games with the Wildcats and needs six more to tie Suzanne Fox, who won 117 games at ACU between 1992 and 1997. Only Shawna Lavender (149) and Burl McCoy (299) have won more games than Fox in the 47 seasons of ACU women's basketball.
Goodenough's 24-year career record stands at 400-268 (.599), and her six-year record with the Wildcats is an impressive 111-48 (.698).
The Wildcats don't have much of a Christmas break as they'll begin their fifth season of Southland Conference play at home the afternoon of Thursday, Dec. 28 vs. New Orleans. ACU and the Privateers tip off at 2 p.m.
