Nov. 21, 2017 Box Score | PDF Box Score | Photo Gallery 
OXFORD, Ohio - Lauren Dickerson poured in 26 points and four Miami players scored in double figures as the women's basketball team posted a 77-68 victory over Valparaiso on Tuesday afternoon.
Tuesday's contest served as the RedHawks' (2-2) Goals for Life game as they played in front of a crowd of 1,037 people, primarily area middle schoolers.
The Crusaders (1-1) scored the game's first five points and grabbed an 8-1 lead four minutes in before Kendall McCoy made the RedHawks' first field goal, a three with 4:24 gone by. A baseline jumper by Savannah Kluesner cut the deficit to 8-6 with 4:24 left in the first quarter.
Valparaiso bumped its lead to six a couple times in that quarter, going on top 13-7 with 1:47 left in the opening frame. Dickerson then caught fire to keep Miami within striking distance, scoring six of MU's final eight points of the quarter with a couple jumpers and two free throws in the closing seconds to pull it to within 17-15 after 10 minutes of play.
A Meredith Hamlet three put Valpo on top 20-15 two and a half minutes into the second quarter. Hamlet eventually made it 23-19 with a layup at the 4:05 mark, but Megan Galloway provided a spark. The senior scored with a ball fake and layup before getting ahead of everyone for a fast break layup set up by a long pass by Dickerson to tie it up at 23 apiece with 5:03 left in the half.
Miami's next possession saw Dickerson connect on a three to give it a 26-24 lead, its first of the game with 4:14 remaining until halftime. Galloway continued to produce inside by scoring MU's next five points on a free throw, an inside jumper and a layup to make it 31-28. After Valparaiso split a pair of free throws, Dickerson drained a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Red & White a 34-29 lead at the half.
Jumpers by McCoy and Kayla Brown put Miami up 38-29 less than a minute into the half. The RedHawks remained up nine at 42-33 nearly midway through the third quarter before the Crusaders hit a three with 5:27 left. Valpo cut it to six a couple times before Dickerson scored three the old fashioned with a running jumper in the lane and a free throw to bump the lead back to 47-38 with 4:21 remaining in the quarter. The sophomore later crossed over and splashed in a three at the top of the key with 2:47 left to give the RedHawks their biggest lead of the afternoon to that point, 51-40.
Valparaiso got back in it, however, as it closed the quarter with an 8-2 spurt to cut MU's lead to 53-48 with one quarter remaining to play. The Crusaders pulled even closer at the start of the fourth Grace Hales hit a three to make it a 53-51 game. A Galloway hoop upped the lead back to four, but Valpo hit another three to pull within 55-54. Dickerson followed that with a three of her own, but Valpo answered with another trifecta to keep the pressure on in a one-point game.
Leading by two, a good dribble drive and kick out by Dickerson set up a McCoy three in the corner to bump the lead back to 62-57 with 4:16 to go. Valparaiso got back to within 64-62 with 2:19 remaining, but Brown hit a pair of free throws to make it a two-score game. After Valpo split a pair of free throws to pull within three, Molly McDonagh made a contested layup to make it 68-63. Following a Miami stop, Dickerson broke down her player on the dribble and hit a soft jumper in the lane to put the game away at 70-63.
Dickerson went 9-for-15 from the floor while hitting 4-of-10 three-pointers to score her game-high 26 points while her six rebounds were one shy of the team lead. Brown (13 points) went 11-of-12 from the foul line, McCoy (12 points) hit a pair of threes and grabbed seven rebounds while Galloway (11 points) made 5-of-7 from the floor to finish in double figures. MU shot 45.3 percent from the field, going 19-of-40 (47.5 percent) after the first quarter and hit 23-of-31 at the charity stripe. Valparaiso had a 36-31 advantage in rebounding while Miami forced 14 turnovers and committed 11.
The RedHawks are back in action on Friday when they head to the LMU Thanksgiving Classic by taking on host Loyola Marymount. The action tips off at 6:30 p.m. ET.
