Just about everything went right for the Tacoma Baptist Lady Crusaders against Chief Leschi, as they used their trademark defensive pressure for a 52-17 win over the Warriors on Jan. 15.

Senior guard Amy Kliewer helped Tacoma Baptist to a 10-7 first-quarter lead by scoring nine of her 13 points in the period, including an early three-pointer. The Crusaders then clamped down defensively, outscoring the Warriors 16-1 in the second quarter as junior post Sarah Zeitler began dominating inside. Zeitler’s layup with just under three minutes left in the half made it 22-8, and Kliewer emphasized the first-half effort with a jumper with 19 seconds left to make it 26-8.

Tacoma Baptist then put it away in the third quarter, outscoring the Warriors 20-5. Katie Cameron’s jumper just over halfway through the period gave the Crusaders their largest lead to that point at 38-13, and it slowly kept building. Zeitler finished with a game-high 17 points and added 10 rebounds, and Ashley Brooks added eight points for the Crusaders.

By Jeremy Helling