CALDWELL, Idaho – A great defensive first half gave the University of Providence a lead that was enough to last the rest of the game, turning a 36-21 halftime score into a 74-66 win over the College of Idaho. UP scored 12 points off turnovers in the first quarter and allowed just 9 points in the second quarter.
 
"We played great in the first half and then didn't quite keep that up in the second but I'm really proud of our defense," Head Coach Bill Himmelberg said. "We continue to get better and better and we're 8-0."
 
The Lady Argos fed freshman  post Parker  Esary early and often in the first quarter, letting her use her physicality to bully the Yotes down low. The combination of her points in the paint and the points UP scored off of CI's 8 turnovers allowed the Lady Argos to get out to a 12 point lead.
 
In the second quarter, the Yotes cleaned up the turnovers, but UP's defense got even tougher. CI scored just 2 points in the first 6 minutes of the period and only managed to make 3 field goals.
 
While the Yotes were struggling to score, UP's starters were having no such problems. The Lady Argos shot 41 percent in the first half, but the starters shot over 50 percent.  Esary led the team with 10 points in just 8 minutes of play and senior guards Stephanie McDonagh and Molly Herron combined to score 13 points and pull down 8 rebounds.
 
UP actually shot better in the second half and had few turnovers but the Yotes made even bigger offensive improvements. After committing 11  first half  turnovers, CI had just 5 in the second half, and the team's shooting percentage went from 31 percent to 50 percent.
 
The second half started with UP ahead by 17, and while the Yotes were able to take 10 points off of that in the third quarter, the score was still 60-48 with 10 minutes left to play. It was the same story in the final quarter, with the lead shrinking no lower than 7 and growing to as much as 12.
 
Senior Kallee Wilson had a huge second half with a tenacious effort on the offensive glass and 5-7 shooting from the field. She finished the half with 11 points, which in itself would have been a season high, but combined with her 5 points in the first half, she set a new career high with 16 points. She also came 1 rebound shy of her second double-double.
 
With a team-leading 19 points, McDonagh actually had her lowest points total in the past five games. As always, she did more than just score, adding 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 steals to her totals.
 
In just 21 minutes of play, Esary scored 18 points and pulled down 7 rebounds. Herron was UP's fourth double-digit score, getting 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists.
 
The win keeps the Lady Argos undefeated at 8-0 but the team is about to face by far its toughest tests of the season. UP travels down to Jackson, Tennessee for the NAIA's premier non-conference tournament where they will play (3) Freed-Hardeman on November 24 and (22) Cumberland on November 25.