Madeline Cooke tied her career high with 17 rebounds and added three blocks as The Master’s University women’s basketball team knocked off RV Montana Western 69-56 Tuesday in the first game of the Cactus Classic in Chandler, Ariz.

The Lady Mustangs (10-1) defense woke up in the second half, limiting the Bulldogs to just 16 points in the final two quarters to erase a halftime deficit and win by 13.

“Uncharacteristic first half for us defensively allowing six threes. We played well enough to be in the game, but poor execution offensively was compounded by losing hot shooters on the defensive end,” said TMU head coach Lisa Zamroz. “Second half was another story. Our team responded with an exceptional effort holding them to 18% shooting and single digit scoring in both the third and fourth quarters.

Turnovers plagued TMU in the first half, committing 10 over those first 20 minutes. Those mistakes were most apparent in the final three-and-a-half minutes of the half when three turnovers enabled MWU to go on a 10-2 run and take a 40-34 lead into the locker room.

The Master’s shot well in the half, hitting 14 of 29 (48%) from the field, but allowed Montana Western to hit 17 of 35 (49%).

Those numbers changed dramatically after the break as TMU dropped to 12 of 28 (43%), but held MWU to just 6 of 34 (18%) over the entire second half.

Marin Lenz was the leading scorer for the Lady Mustangs, collecting 23 points on 8 of 12 shooting. Belle Hernandez added 19 with a team-high six assists, and Lexi Hernandez had 11.

“I thought we had great senior leadership today,” Zamroz said. “Better focus lead to more confidence offensively as well. I’m proud of a hard fought team win.”

The Master’s, receiving votes in the latest NAIA Top 25 poll, will take on MidAmerica Nazarene, also receiving votes, on Thursday at the Cactus Classic. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. PT.