A 15-point run in the second half of Nov. 6’s showdown against the Richard J. Daley College Bulldogs put MATC on top for good after the frantic early goings saw 12 lead changes and five ties.
The Stormers were led by the return of sophomore guard Shonnice Vaughn, who scrambled, ripped and worked her way to 21 points, 10 rebounds, three steals, and one block in her first action this season after being out with an injury.
MATC head coach Jeff Lorenz was elated over what Vaughn’s comeback meant for the team.
“She’s such a talented individual,” Lorenz said after the game. “I mean, you see the energy level she brings to the floor and it just brings our whole team energy level up. It just elevates us.
“It’s just nice to have her back,” Lorenz continued.
It was a long road to follow for Vaughn, but she wants it known she didn’t do it on her own and that winning is what matters most.
“It was hard,” Vaughn shared, “but I had encouragement from my teammates and my coaches to be able to come back and pull this ‘W’ and also have a good game.”
The game was a tale of two halves, with Daley heading to the locker room at the half up 34-31. MATC righted the ship with 14 minutes to go when a long-distance bomb from guard Ciarra Heldt found its target to put the Stormers up 42-40. A mere four minutes later and the score was 54-40, a deficit much too deep for the shorthanded Bulldogs to bite their way back from.
Daley was forced to play the final six minutes of the contest with only four players on the court after two of their total of six eligible players fouled out.
Including Vaughn, five MATC players finished the game with double-digit rebounds. Guard Trisha Patton led the team with 13 boards and scored 16 points.
The team improved to 5-5 for the season and will begin conference play on Saturday, Jan. 7 against the College of DuPage.