Was down at St. Peter last night for the home opener for GAC as they hosted WIAC foe UW-River Falls. After getting bounced two nights before in Waverly by IIAC opponent Wartburg, you can imagine that the Gusties were anxious to get back on the court to try and right the ship.
But I could detect the nervousness on GAC Head Coach Mickey Haller's face before the game and her fears were justified as they were taking on a very athletic, fast and experience UW-River Falls team that has a ton of returning players from last year's team that got off to a 13-0 start. The Falcons started out pressing right away, forcing some Gustie turnovers. That, combined with two 3-pointers gave UW-River Falls a quick 10-2 lead just under the 17:00 minute mark in the first half. After a Gustie basket, the Falcons responded with yet another "3" that got them to 13-4.
It was apparent to me that the Gusties were having a difficult time adjusting to the speed and athleticisim that UW-River Falls has; particularly at the guard positions. Moreover, the Falcon front consisting of Maranda Dohrn and Taylor House were wreaking havoc down low on the Gusties who were often caught flat-footed as both Dohrn and House were able to find easy baskets and grab several key offensive rebounds. Despite a Molly Geske 3-pointer that got the Gusties to within six at 13-7, UW-River Falls would then go on a 8-2 run to get to 21-9 at the 8:27 mark. GAC looked as if they were in BIG trouble.
But, to the Gusties credit, the clawed and scratched their way back into the contest as they reeled off a 14-2 run of their own to eventually get the game knotted up at 23-all. The two teams would play relatively even steven for the rest of the 1st half that saw them knotted up at 32-all at the intermission.
My own feelings about the first half was that, despite the fact that GAC managed to get on a run of their own that enabled them to get even again, they really got outplayed for the most part by UW-River Falls. The Gusties looked S-L-O-W at times on defense and Dohrn and House made minced meat of the willowy Gustie front line. I give GAC a LOT of credit for keeping their composure and battling back. Still, you had to figure there was a lot of chewing and cussing going on in that locker room at halftime.
UW-River Falls started out the second half much the same way as they began the opening minutes of the 1st half; getting on a quick 5-0 run highlighted by Tiffany Gregorich's 3-pointer. But this time the Gusties ratched up the intensity; particularly on defense and they proceeded to go on a 10-0 tear that got them to 42-37. After forcing a handful of Falcon turnovers, the Gusties then went on another run; this time 10-4 that stretched the GAC lead to 52-41 with just over 10 minutes left in the game. GAC would hold this cushion the rest of the way and wind up with a 70-59 win.
When I look back on this game, particularly the 2nd half, this was, IMHO, a break-out game for sophomore post player Abby Rothenbuehler who was simply outstanding at times with her rebounding; using her slender 6'2" frame for all that it's worth. And not only that, she was a disruptive force on the defensive side as well for the Gusties as she forced several bad or rushed passes from the Falcons. Also (pleasantly) surprising for me were both Kelsey Florian and freshman newcomer Julia Dysthie. Molly Mathiowetz made up for a sluggish 1st half as well. Despite all the turnovers UW-River Falls had in the second half, for the game they outrebounded the Gusties 36-26; something that the Gusties will ultimately have to address as they head out to South Dakota to take on Augustana College. UW-River Falls will be in the Twin Cities tomorrow (Friday 11-19) as one of the teams in the Northwesten Tip-Off Classic this weekend as the Falcons will open with IIAC powerhouse (and defending Champion) Simpson. That should be a GREAT one to watch.
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