Spring Arbor's relentless defense came away with 14 steals in the contest and forced Mount Vernon Nazarene (10-12, 4-6 CL) into 29 turnovers, which the Cougars converted into 28 points.

Like in its upset victory over No. 22 Huntington University earlier this week, the Cougars pounced on the visitors quickly, racing out to a double-digit lead. SAU forced Mount Vernon Nazarene into seven turnovers in the first six and a half minutes en route to an early 14-1 advantage.

Spring Arbor led 30-17 with 4:07 to play in the second quarter, but junior Kylie Townsley scored five points as part of a 7-2 run to end the period giving the Cougars a 39-19 lead at halftime.

Following a back and forth third quarter, SAU would enter the fourth still up by 20, but Mount Vernon Nazarene would make a push to get back in the game. After starting the period with six unanswered points, the visiting Cougars continued to ride their momentum and would use another quick scoring spurt to trim the deficit to single digits, 56-47, with 3:15 remaining.

Spring Arbor responded immediately, though, getting a clutch three-pointer from junior Aimee Konkel and, following a MVNU turnover, Townsley would knock down a jumper to boost the lead back to 14, 61-47. The Cougars would force three straight turnovers to fuel a 9-0 run in a three minute span to put the game away.

The two teams finished the game with nearly identical shooting percentages. Spring Arbor hit 44 percent (25-for-56) of its attempts while MVNU converted on 43 percent (19-for-44) of its shots. The difference came on SAU's 28-5 advantage in points off turnovers.

Sophomore Autumn Goggin led the way for the Cougars with 15 points and seven rebounds while Townsley followed with 13 points and seven boards. Sophomore Faith Johnson chipped in nine points and four steals. Senior Jessica Mabry and Konkel finished with seven points apiece.

Spring Arbor (12-10, 4-6 CL) will look to continue its winning ways when it visits No. 21 Goshen College (16-6, 8-2 CL) on Wednesday, Jan. 27 at 7 p.m