KINGSPORT, Tenn. (Feb. 27, 2015) â€" Hayley Wyrick scored a career high 30 points, but there was no single most valuable player in the Milligan College women's basketball team's 90-72 win over Union College in the semifinals of the Appalachian Athletic Conference tournament on Friday.
 
Eight Buffaloes entered the scoring column, four were in double digits, and Milligan (14-17, 10-10 AAC) played one of the most complete games of basketball this season to put Head Coach Rich Aubrey's program into the conference tournament title game for the second year in a row. There, Milligan will face No. 10 Tennessee Wesleyan College on Saturday at 2 p.m. back here at the MeadowView Marriott.
 
"With each day this week, I feel like our team is committed to playing together and committed to competing together. Today was no exception," Aubrey said. "We had a lot of people play well, and a lot of people who made important contributions. It was a great team win."
 
Union, which defeated Milligan 72-67 in last year's tournament championship game, was eliminated and fell to 19-9 (15-5 AAC).
 
The Buffaloes, now on a four-game winning streak, came out of the gates on fire and fluctuated between warm and hot for nearly all 40 minutes. In the first half, they scored 12 straight points to go on top for good at the 17-minute mark. They were 5-of-6 from the field and ended that stretch with a Lindsee Price triple that made it 14-6 six minutes in. Chelsey Weddle made it back-to-back three's on the next possession, pushing Milligan out to a nine-point advantage.
 
Milligan extended its lead to its largest first-half margin of 15 when Caitlyn Cain scored a bucket to complete a 12-5 run with just over nine minutes left. The Buffs were well on their way to the century mark at that point, having scored 25 through the first 10 minutes.
 
Union clawed back to get the deficit down to six by the half, but the Buffs answered with the first 10 points of the second half. Wyrick started the scoring with a 3-pointer on Milligan's opening possession, then Price continued it 90 seconds later with an old-fashioned 3-point play. Price's and-one was one of five times Milligan went to the line after scoring a bucket as the Buffs hammered the ball inside, making tough basket after tough basket.
 
Milligan outscored Union 44-16 in the paint.
 
As soon as Milligan got the lead back out to 16 points, which Allison Jones did with two made free throws at the 17:22 mark, Union once again cut the deficit down to single digits. The Bulldogs trimmed it to 53-45 with 14 minutes left, 59-52 with 11 minutes left, and 64-57 with eight minutes left, but Milligan had every answer.
 
After a 3-pointer from Union's Haley Perkins matched their lowest deficit of the second half, Kelly Barnett answered in a big way at the other end of the floor. Barnett scored a tough layup on an in-bounds play from Price with one second left on the shot clock. Her basket started a 6-0 run and was part of the 26-15 run Milligan used to end the game.
 
Down the stretch, Milligan made 10 of its last 13 free throws to keep the game out of reach.
 
"I like the way we fought all game," Aubrey said. "First half and second half, we had a lot of answers. At one point, they cut it to single digits with a three, then Callie Cox answered with a three. We had answers all night, and when you have answers, that gives you confidence."
 
Wyrick's 30 points moved the sophomore's career total to 984. It came alongside seven rebounds and two assists. Wyrick was 10-of-15 from the floor and 1-of-2 from three. She also converted 9-of-12 from the free throw line.
 
Weddle finished with 18 points and seven rebounds. Her career total now stands at 966. Jones scored 12 points and added eight rebounds and three assists. She now has 974 career points.
 
Price filled up the stat sheet with seven points, eight assists, four rebounds and three steals. She turned the ball over only once.
 
Cox scored nine points with four rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals. One of her two 3-point makes answered Union's last gasp as she knocked down a triple from the wing in front of the Milligan bench coming out of a timeout when Union had cut it to eight with 4 1/2 minutes remaining.
 
Although the Buffaloes eclipsed the 80-point mark three times this season, they reached the 90-point mark for the first time since defeating Columbia on the road in February of last year. They scored 91 in that one.
 
As a team, the Buffaloes were 32-of-54 (59.3%) and 6-of-15 (40%) from three. They made all four 3-point attempts in the second half. The 59 percent shooting was in stark contrast to the 31% effort they put forth in the AAC tournament final against Union last season. It was also the hottest shooting display Milligan had all season.
 
For Union, Angie Lawrence was 9-of-21 from the field and 3-of-7 from three, finishing with a game high 25 points, with six rebounds. All-Conference first team selections Lydia Nash and Perkins were held to 10 and nine, respectively.
 
Up next, Milligan plays No. 10 Tennessee Wesleyan in the AAC championship game, scheduled for Saturday at 2 p.m. Milligan lost both meetings to TWC this season, by 19 on the road and by nine at home. A victory on Saturday would punch a ticket to the NAIA Women's Basketball National Championship for the second time in the last three seasons. The national tournament is scheduled for March 11-17, in Sioux City, Iowa.