PUEBLO, Colo. (November 9, 2019) – Allie Schulte (18 points), Caitlyn Cunyus (17 points) and Maddi Chitsey (15 points) combined for 50 points and over 70% of the offense, as their production helped No.1 Lubbock Christian University top Metropolitan State of Denver 70-60 in their final game of the Al Kaly Shrine Classic inside Massari Arena Saturday.
 
Both teams had the hot-hand to open the contest, as each team opened the game 5-of-7 (71%) from the field and the teams were locked up 12-12 in the opening quarter. LCU would go without a field goal for nearly a five-minute stretch, while missing seven straight field goal attempts. A three-pointer by Ashton Duncan ended the drought for LCU and helped cut Metro State's lead to 17-16 to end the first quarter.
 
LCU had their best quarter in the second quarter. LCU went a stretch just under six minutes in which they were 10-of-13 (76.9%) from the field, hitting 8-of-9 (89%) of their shots inside the perimeter.   The stretch included a 9-0 run book-ended by layups from Cunyus, who had nine points and two steals in the quarter.  Schulte had 10 points in the quarter, helping LCU rack up 25 points in the quarter. LCU's 62.5% (10/16) shooting in the frame helped them take a 41-30 lead into the halftime break.
 
Cunyus' hot play continued into the third quarter. She was 3-of-3 from the field in the quarter, while the rest of the Lady Chaps were a combined 2-of-9. Cunyus had six points in the quarter and two of her field goals followed Roadrunner baskets that had cut the LCU lead to an eight-point margin. Her final field goal of the quarter sparked a 5-0 run to end the quarter and LCU took a 57-44 lead into the fourth quarter
 
Metro State had a great opportunity to rally back in the fourth quarter, as LCU opened the fourth quarter 0-of-4 from the field and went scoreless the opening five minutes of the quarter. The Roadrunners opened the quarter on a 7-0 run and cut LCU's lead to 57-51 with 5:39 remaining. Chitsey knocked down a field goal to end the run and it sparked a 6-2 scoring advantage for LCU to build their lead to 63-53 with 3:48 remaining. Morgan Lewis connected on a three-pointer for MSU Denver, cutting the LCU advantage to 63-56, but LCU did not allow any Roadrunner scoring runs the rest of the way. MSU Denver was 2-of-7 from the field in the final 6:16 of the game. LCU survived from the line despite a woeful 5-of-9 (55.6%) shooting from the line in the final quarter.
 
The Lady Chaps struggled to get into an offensive rhythm outside in the second half. They were 0-of-7 outside the arc in the second half and 9-of-18 inside the arc in the half. They finished the game 43.9% (25/57) from the field. LCU had a 38-16 scoring advantage in the paint and a 16-6 scoring advantage in points-off-turnovers. A positive in the second half for LCU was their rebounding. After a 20-14 Roadrunner rebound advantage in the first half, LCU bounced back to out-rebound the Roadrunners 25-13 in the second half. MSU Denver had a 11-4 advantage in second-chance-scoring.
 
Along with the trio of Chitsey, Cunyus and Schulte, LCU also had 10 points from Juliana Robertson, who had six rebounds and three assists before fouling out. Schulte's 18 points matched a career high and it is a task she has completed three times. Schulte and Chitsey were named to the Al Kaly Shrine Classic All-Tournament Team.
 
MSU Denver received a team-high 17 points from Jaela Richardson, who also had nine rebounds. Metro was 36.8% (21/57) from the field in the contest.
 
LCU improved to 2-0 with the win, while MSU Denver fell to 0-2. The Lady Chaps moved to 5-2 in the all-time series against MSU Denver.
 
TURNING POINT
During LCU's 10-of-13 shooting stretch in the second quarter, LCU out-scored MSU Denver 19-9. They did most of the damage via the shooting of Caitlyn Cunyus (4-of-6) and Allie Shulte (4-of-4), who went a combined 8-of-10 from the field in the quarter.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBER
Maddi Chitsey not only had 15 points, but she also produced eight rebounds and a career-high five blocks. Chitsey's five blocks were the most since Tess Bruffey had five in the NCAA South Central Region Tournament Championship against West Texas A&M on Mar. 12, 2018. LCU produced eight blocks as a team, which is something they only did once last season (10 against Oklahoma Christian on Jan. 26, 2019).
 
WHAT'S NEXT
After a storied preseason of three road exhibition games and a pair of regular season games in Colorado, the Lady Chaps will return home for the first time Friday to host the Arbor Hotels Classic. They tip-off at 2 p.m. Friday facing Colo. Colorado Springs inside Rip Griffin Center.