Purdue Calumet Sports Update, February 15, 2016

PUC-Purdue-Calumet-Defeats-Holy-Cross-70-61-in-Home-Finale#15 Purdue Calumet Defeats Holy Cross 70-61 in Home Finale
The No. 15 Purdue University Calumet women’s basketball team used a strong third quarter to pull away from visiting Holy Cross College, 70-61, Saturday afternoon at the Fitness and Recreation Center.

Junior Cassidy Deno (Otterbein, Ind./Benton Central) recorded her sixth-straight game of scoring 20 points or more, pouring in a game-high 29 on 8-of-18 shooting and 12-of-12 from the free-throw line to lead the Peregrines, who improved to 21-7 overall and 12-6 in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference.

Sophomore teammate Katie Wampler (Scottsburg, Ind./Scottsburg) added 22 points and 11 rebounds – her third double-double of the season – and classmate Jessica Kiser (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) had nine points in the victory.

The Peregrines struggled from the floor in the first half, shooting just 28.1 percent (9-of-32) from the field as the host went into halftime down, 33-30. Holy Cross (9-19, 6-11), utilizing its nine made 3-pointers in the game, build as much as a six-point lead, 45-39, with 5:25 left in the quarter.

But Kiser squased the run with a jumper in the paint and followed it with a free throw to bring the Peregrines within three, 45-42. Purdue Calumet would go on a 11-1 run to finish the quarter and head into the fourth up four, 50-46. Deno (four points), Darien Thompson (Anderson, Ind./Anderson) (two points) and Wampler (two points) added offense during the run that put the Peregrines back in the lead for good.

The closest the Saints would get was two, after Shelby Nelson hit a layup with 9:27 left to make it 50-48 Purdue Calumet. A Wampler layup inside and two made free throws – coupled with another Kiser jumper – pushed the lead back to eight.

Purdue Calumet shot 36.5 percent (23-of-63) for the game compared to 31.5 percent (23-of-73) for Holy Cross, while the Saints won the rebounding battle, 48-47. The Peregrines also dominated the paint, 39-26, en route to their sixth straight home win.

Keysha Streater and Tagin Schultheis led the Saints with 12 points each and Nelson and Jessica Norris each had 10 points in the loss.

Deno added eight rebounds, and senior Patrice McBee (Monterey, Ind./Culver Community) and sophomore Ellie Michalski (Mukwonago, Wis./Mukwonago) each had six boads in the rebounding effort. Michalski also added four blocks – a career-high – off the bench.

Purdue Calumet returns to action Wednesday, Feb. 17, when the Peregrines conclude the regular season with a road CCAC contest at Trinity Christian. The CCAC Tournament begins quarterfinal action on Tuesday, Feb. 23.

Men's Basketball's Comeback Falls Short in 66-57 Loss to Holy Cross
The Purdue University Calumet men’s basketball team fell to Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference opponent Holy Cross, 66-57, Saturday afternoon at the Fitness and Recreation Center.

The Peregrines were led by freshman guard Chandler Spring (Covington, Ind./Covington), who scored a game-high 18 points thanks to a quartet of three-point field goals, while LaBradford Sebree (Kokomo, Ind./Kokomo) notched 14 points.

The Saints jumped out to an early 10-0 lead to start off the contest, thanks to six points from Karl Columbus.

A jump shot from Columbus later in the half put Holy Cross up 18 points, 27-9, but the Peregrines would rally back to cut their deficit to 11, 30-19,to close out the half.

Holy Cross would take their largest lead of the game with 14:29 remaining in the game, after a Dalton Wagler layup made it 48-25 in favor of the Trolls.

The Black and Gold fought hard to get within single digits of the Saints, thanks to trifecta from Dayvohn Braxton (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) which put the Peregrines within seven points, 55-48, with 5:49 left in the final period.

Holy Cross would try and extend their advantage, but the Peregrines kept battling to cut their deficit to just four, 61-57, after a pair of made free throws by Ryan Rader (Lombard, Ill./Willowbrook).

That was as close as they would get though, after Holy Cross would make their free throws down the stretch and come away with the 66-57 victory.

The Saints were headlined by Karl Columbus who scored 16 points and tallied six assists while Bryce Crosen shot a perfect 4-of-4 from the field for 10 points.

The Peregrines return to action on Wednesday, Feb. 17, when they travel to Trinity Christian to face off with the Trolls. Tip-Off is set for 7:30 p.m. (CT).

Purdue Calumet Opens 2016; Falls to NCAA Lake Superior State
The Purdue University Calumet men's tennis team opened its 2016 campaign Sunday, but fell to visiting NCAA Division II Lake Superior State University, 9-0, at MatchPoint Tennis.

Peregrines' (0-1) newcomer Diego Pimentel (Guayaquil, Ecuador) fell at No. 1 singles to LSSU's Jake Prime, 6-2, 6-1, joining teammates Patrick Mudd (Crown Point, Ind./Crown Point), Jayson Savich (Lowell, Ind./Lowell), Will Harber (Michigan City, Ind./Michigan City) and Delmer Fleming (Lowell, Ind./Lowell) in snagging games in their singles' losses.

The No. 1 doubles duo of Pimental and Fleming and No. 2 doubles teammates Mudd and Savich were also able to win one game in 8-1 losses to LSSU.

Purdue Calumet returns to action Saturday, Feb. 27, when the Peregrines travel to St. Joseph's (Ind.) for a 10 a.m. matchup in Rensselaer.

Lake Superior State 9, Purdue Calumet 0
Griffith, Ind., at MatchPoint Tennis

SINGLES – 1. Jake Prime def. Diego Pimentel, 6-2, 6-1; 2. Borja Font def. Patrick Mudd, 6-0, 6-1; 3. Ieuan Lister def. Jayson Savich, 6-0, 6-1; 4. Luis Valderrama def. Will Harber, 6-0, 6-2; 5. Miles Munro def. Delmer Fleming, 6-0, 6-1; 6. T.J. Myers def. James Newman, 6-0, 6-0.

DOUBLES – 1. Lister/Font def. Pimental/Fleming, 8-1; 2. Prime/Valderrama def. Mudd/Savich, 8-1; 3. Munro/Myers def. Harber/Newman, 8-0.