Rodney paces Monroe to pair of wins in Ohio

TOLEDO, Ohio - Sophomore Lanay Rodney led the way as the MCC women's basketball team captured a pair of victories at the Express Classic at Owens Community College over the weekend.

The third-ranked Tribunes took down Vincennes University 83-80 on Saturday before dispatching No. 17 Owens 81-70 on Sunday. Monroe is 9-1 on the season.

Rodney proved to be unstoppable all weekend for MCC. The 5-foot-8 forward had 24 points and 13 rebounds as Monroe built a big lead before holding off the Trailblazers on Saturday. She then went off for 34 points on 15-of-19 shooting in the win against the Express on Sunday.

The Tribunes were on fire early against Vincennes. Sierra Green hit all five of her 3's and MCC had 11 total from long range as the team opened a 47-28 lead at the break. Torrie Cash chipped in with three 3's and Rodney added two herself in the opening 20 minutes.

Vincennes rallied in the second half and put up 32 points in the fourth quarter alone. The Tribunes were just 3-for-10 from the field in the final stanza, but did knock down 11-of-14 free throws over the final 10 minutes to help put the game away.

Shalix Hines finished with 20 points and Green added 19 for MCC. Cash finished with four 3's and 14 points.

The hot shooting continued on Sunday, as Monroe shot 60 percent from the floor to knock off a tough Owens team on their home court. Rodney had her way in the paint as she tied a career high in points, converting layup after layup to keep Monroe in command.

Cash finished with 17 points and was 9-for-10 from the charity stripe. She knocked down all six free throws in the fourth to keep Owens at bay. Green added nine points and Hines had eight.