SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – A dozen Notre Dame College women's basketball players scored two or more points in an 81-62 victory against Urbana on Saturday afternoon that moved the team's record to 10-8 (7-5 MEC). The 12 players that contributed to the scoreboard is the most the ball has been spread since head coach Lauren Macer's sixth career game against UVa-Wise on November 20, 2017 when 15 player scored at least two in a 90-68 win.
 
"I think it was definitely a good team win, especially coming off tough losses last week," Macer said. "It's good to show that they can come together and play together. They played team basketball today. They made the extra pass and played through possessions."
 
The team play started in the first half as eight players scored in the first two quarters. Notre Dame scored the first two points of the game and held its lead through the rest of the first quarter. The Falcons hit a bit of a slump in the second quarter as they made just five of 16 field goal attempts as a team.
 
Urbana took advantage of the missed shots and gained its first lead of the game early in the second quarter. The teams would trade leads four times before NDC took the game back with 5:47 left in the first half. The Falcons would carry that lead through to the end of the contest.
 
Overall in the first half, Notre Dame shot just 36 percent from the field. But in the final two quarters, the Falcons found their shots, making 18 of 34 field goals and 11 of 14 free throws.
 
"[Our message at halftime was] just that our shots would fall," Macer said. "They were getting good looks in the first half, but weren't making them. They talked about that amongst themselves before the coaches even talked to them. But we told them to keep attacking and playing strong."
 
A big part of the second-half scoring surge was NDC's passing. The Falcons assisted on 12 of 18 shots made in the second half and turned the ball over just four times, which was a big improvement from the five assists and 13 turnovers in the first two quarters.
 
"We didn't want any mental lapses in the second half to give away our lead," said forward Jessie Stout. "We have a lot of players that are really good at cutting and getting themselves open and when we play that extra pass we can find great shots."
 
Stout led the team in both scoring and rebounding in the second half with eight points and five boards on the way to her fourth double-double of the season. Her 11 rebounds led both teams while her 14 points tied for the lead for NDC.
 
"I try to focus on rebounding as much as I can because it's really important to get us those extra possessions," Stout said. "If I can get us a second-chance or fast-break opportunity that can create momentum for us and get us in a better rhythm."
 
Katie Karalic also scored 14 points to lead Notre Dame while Kyleigh Ramlow put up 10. Ramlow also led the team with four assists while Stout, Seina Adachi and Ajia McIntyre each had three. Adachi was a force on the defensive end with four steals.
 
Notre Dame will play at West Virginia State on Wednesday, January 30, at 5:30 p.m.