Was over at Augsburg's Si Melby Hall last night to take in the clash between Northwestern and host Augsburg last night which was the final non-conference game for both squads. Although I've already seen Northwestern play at least three times so far this season, I was anxious to get my first look at the revamped Auggie squad to see what (if any) improvements there might be.
Northwestern would alter its starting line-up with the insertion of Kristin Sczublewski at the PG spot; taking the place of an injured Kelsey Kosman. Both teams were ineffective offensively early on and it wasn't until the 16:42 mark that Sczublewski got the Eagles on the board with a long trey for a 3-0 lead and she would drain another "3" from the left corner at the 15:34 mark. Those two long-range shots which sandwiched an easy 2-point basket by Allison Johnson and was soon followed by a Katie DeWitt finish gave Northwestern a 10-0 lead and had them feeling good about themselves - at least for the short-term anyway. It wasn't until the 14:52 mark that Augsburg was finally able to break the ice and get something going. Over the next two minutes, they would go on a 7-0 run of their own to slice the deficit down to a scant three points.
Augsburg got to within one of Northwestern at the 12:13 mark before the Eagles kicked it in again; thanks to Tanya Dickey and Allison Johnson that propelled the Eagles to 15-9. But from that point on, things began to slowly unravel for the team wearing purple. Augsburg would go on an 8-2 run and tie things up at 17-all at the 7:57 mark. Perhaps even more ominous for Northwestern, Katie DeWitt was whistled for her third foul and had to ride the pine for the rest of the first half. It would be a tight battle down the stretch before halftime score-wise as Augsburg held a 26-24 lead but in actuality this game was more noteworthy for the comedy of errors on both sides - Augsburg with several missed EASY shots inside and Northwestern with a plethora of turnovers. In short, U-G-L-Y.
Things wouldn't change that much in the beginning part of the second half. But Augsburg had changed up its strategy somewhat; doing some half-court pressing and trapping that really took Northwestern out of its offensive rythym; forcing several turnovers. Newcomer Tracee Schrank nailed a "3" for the Auggies from the left corner at the 15:42 mark and a putback on a rebound by the Auggies extended their lead to 35-28. Despite DeWitt's presence in the second half, not much went right for the Eagles down the home stretch. At 9:36, the Auggies with two quick scores from Nikki Borkhuis and lanky Brittany Dyshaw would give Head Coach Jennifer Britz' squad a 45-34 lead. This was when the wheels REALLY fell off as far as Northwestern was concerned as Augsburg would reel off a 9-2 run that got them to 54-36 at the 7:41 mark.
Northwestern wouldn't quit, however, as Katie DeWitt's heroics trimmed the Augsburg lead to 57-47 at the 4:44 mark but each time Northwestern looked like it might be able to make a run at the Auggies the home team would respond with some clutch 3-point shooting that would keep the pesky Eagles at bay. Augsburg would be able to ice the issue away at the charity stripe and, at the end, claimed a 70-62 victory.
As expected, a nearly hoarse but excited Jennifer Britz would credit her squad's victory to a change-up on defense; doing some trapping and getting more up-tempo with the ball. And, not surprisingly, Aaron Kahl of Northwestern was disappointed afterward, saying his team has a "lot of work to do." It will be interesting to see how Augsburg responds from this win as they host St. Mary's in their MIAC opener tonight. Northwestern gets a couple of extra days to lick their wounds as they will host Finlandia on Friday evening.
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