Box Score Rochester, Mich. (Feb. 10, 2007) ???C Oakland???s women???s basketball team completed a season sweep of Valparaiso with a 65-44 victory over the visiting Crusaders in Mid-Continent Conference action at the O???Rena this afternoon. The Golden Grizzlies extended their winning streak to nine games while retaining their hold on first place in the conference standings. Senior Nicole Piggott (Pewamo, Mich.) led Oakland with 18 points and seven rebounds while sophomore Jessica Pike (Clawson, Mich.) posted double figures for the fifth consecutive match with 14 points. Oakland fell behind early as the Crusaders jumped out to a 10-4 lead after five minutes of play. Pike and Piggott each scored field goals for OU to even the game 4-4 at 16:44, but Valparaiso scored the next six points with Betsy Rietema hitting from beyond the arc and Tamra Braun converting a three-point play after being fouled on a layup for the six-point advantage with 15:05 left. The Golden Grizzlies scored 10 of the next 14 points to tie the game 14-14 with 7:48 remaining. Oakland spread out the scoring as Piggott, sophomore Riikka Terava (Helsinki, Finland), freshman Hanna Reising (Peoria, Ill.), senior Bonnie Baker (Allen, Park, Mich.) and sophomore April Kidd (Grand Rapids, Mich.) all scored field goals. Braun and Rietema accounted for Valparaiso???s four points. After a free throw by Braun regained the lead for Valparaiso 15-14, the Golden Grizzlies went on a 9-0 run, ignited by a three from Kidd at 6:54. Freshman Melissa Jeltema (Grand Rapids, Mich.) contributed a pair of free throws and Pike and Baker each sent in layups, with Baker???s bringing the score to 23-15 at 4:31. Valparaiso???s Aimee Litka put a halt to Oakland???s run with a three pointer and a subsequent jumper by Launa Hochstetler brought the Crusaders within three 23-20 with 2:27 remaining. But the Golden Grizzlies registered the last four points of the half for the 27-20 score at the break. The Golden Grizzlies opened the second half with an offensive barrage, putting up an 11-1 run to pull away from Valparaiso. Piggott accounted for four points while Jeltema scored three and Baker and junior Charlese Greer (Pontiac, Mich.) each potted field goals to give Oakland a 38-21 edge with 16:09 left on the clock. Over the next six and a half minutes both teams tallied seven points, keeping the 17-point margin in Oakland???s favor 45-28 with 10:23 remaining. Kidd posted a layup and a free throw while Piggott hit a pair of jumpers for the Golden Grizzlies, while Rietema accounted for six of Valparaiso???s points and Braun converted once from the line. Oakland and Valparaiso matched one another again with four points aside over the next two and a half minutes. Pike drained consecutive layups for the Golden Grizzlies, then Whitney Farris answered with a layup of her own while Hochstetler made a pair of free throws at 7:46 for the 49-32 score. The Golden Grizzlies started to extend the lead once again, out scoring Valparaiso 8-1 over the next three minutes to gain a 57-33 lead with 4:40 left to play. Greer started and finished the run for OU, with layups bookending field goals from Pike and Piggott. The Crusaders gained some of those points back over the next minute and a half, putting up six points while holding Oakland to just two. Kelly Peller and Evva Comans scored baskets for Valparaiso while Krystal Taylor???s free throws at 3:12 brought the score to 59-39. Oakland tallied the next four points with free throws from Pike and a jumper by senior Joya Puryear (Detroit, Mich.) to regain the 24-point advantage 63-39 with 1:56 remaining. Valparaiso five of the last seven points as time wound down for the 65-44 final. The Golden Grizzlies out shot Valparaiso 48 percent to 25 percent from the floor, but the Crusaders were more effective from three-point range (14 percent to 11 percent) and from the line (73 percent to 67 percent). OU hosts Western Illinois in Mid-Con action at the O???Rena next Monday at 7:00 p.m.