Women extend streak, thrash Chadron

PUEBLO, Colo. -- Michelle Ambuul (Sr., Colorado Springs, Colo.) scored 19 points for the second night in a row and Rachel Espinoza (So., Pueblo, Colo.) chipped in 17 points and seven assists to lead the CSU-Pueblo ThunderWolves past the Chadron State Eagles 83-66.  With the win, the women are now 8-1 overall, 2-0 in the RMAC and have equalled the longest winning streak in school history.

Ambuul had only four points in the first half, and the ThunderWolves’ early scoring came courtesy of ">Mary Rehfeld (Sr., Juneau, Alaska) and Jonnie Draper (Sr., Littleton, Colo.).  Draper hit a three-pointer to give the pack a 12-9 lead at 15:09, but three straight three-pointers by Chadron star Kristy Long gave the lead back to the Eagles.

Long was far away Chadron’s most explosive player in the first half, going 5-for-5 from long range en route to 15 points at halftime.  Her sharp outside shooting let the Eagles take an 18-15 lead at 11:07, but the Pack roared back to life in the last ten minutes of the period.

After scoring only 18 points on their first 26 possessions, the women scored 22 points on their last 17 offensive trips of the half to pull away before the break, taking a 40-36 lead into the locker room.

The second half wasn’t all about Ambuul, but her 15 second half points played a big part in the ThunderWolves’ ability to secure the win.

She helped open a 7-0 run to start the half, and the senior scorer sank a trio of three-pointers as well.  Chadron came out cold and went scoreless on its first five possessions.  Espinoza’s dribble drives and passing were key as well, and a bucket in the paint by the Pueblo Central product gave the Pack a 60-47 lead at 14:42.

Another bucket by Espinoza put the Pack up by 14, and a three by Ambuul kept the ThunderWolves’ margin intact at the 5:22 mark.  A breakaway layup by Shandryn Trumble (Sr., Green River, Wyo.) at 4:33 put the women up by 16, and the Pack was able to salt away the win from that point on, as Chadron failed to score on its final eight possessions.

The Eagles committed 12 second half turnovers, and 21 overall, which was crucial to helping the Pack earn its historical win.

Game notes and numbers:

Trumble scored 10 points tonight, marking her first double digit scoring night for the Pack.

The Pack shot 34 three-pointers tonight out of 68 total field goal attempts, accounting for exactly 50 percent of the team’s shots.

Both Espinoza and Ambuul were 4-for-4 from the free throw line tonight, helping the team go 14-for-16 from the stripe overall.

Long finished with 16 points, as she scored on only one free throw in the second half.