Was at St. Kate's on this Valentine's Day evening for the game between host St. Kate's and visiting SMU which was actually a make-up game from December that was wiped out due to the tsnownami that hit the Twin Cities that one fateful weekend. Nonetheless, there was a lot riding on this game for the Cardinals to try and stay alive in the wild and wooly MIAC playoff race.
This game would be a nip and tuck affair for the first ten minutes of the first half. SMU senior Jess Miller got things going for SMU at the 19:24 mark with a short jumper but St. Kate's senior Sonja Ellingson responded a little less than a minute later with a "3" from the left wing. The lead would bounce back and forth between the two teams with neither side able to gain much of an advantage. After Wildcat senior Laura Kalbfell tied things up at 10-all at the 13:45 mark with her shot off the glass, SMU was able to get a bit of a burst behind freshman Courtney Euerle's points for a 12-8 Cardinal lead at the 12:08 mark that didn't last long as Kalbfell led her team to knot the issue at 14-all by the 11:12 mark. But another SMU burst behind Miller and fellow senior Cherie Kulig got the red-clad Cardinals a 22-14 lead by the 7:36 mark that should have been the momentum-changer of the game right there. But right back came the 'Cats behind Ellingson and freshman Kristen Lee to once again tie it at 22-all at the 3:10 mark. The rest of the first half would stay close and by halftime SMU was nursing a slim 26-24 lead.
The Cardinals would again make a push to start out the second half. Junior Brittany Begrowicz nailed a "3" at the 19:37 mark that would be the spark for a 12-3 run by SMU that got them a 38-27 lead by the 14:20 mark. But, just like the first half, the Cardinals could not hold the advantage as those pesky Wildcats went on a 13-2 tear of their own to tie it up once again at 40-all; punctuated by Ellingson's "3" from the top of the key at the 11:26 mark. SMU would enjoy its last lead at the 9:20 mark when Kulig's bucket gave the Cardinals a 47-44 lead that would prove to be short-lived. Lee once again responded with a "3" of her own that tied it up at 47-all and Ellingson put the 'Cats ahead for good at the 8:11 mark with her rebound and putback for a 49-47 St. Kate's lead. Over the home stretch run, the 'Cats would gradually build a cushion that had SMU behind the 8-ball the rest of the way. Although the Cardinals would cut the deficit to two points by the 3:05 mark, St. Kate's was able to ice the game away behind the charity stripe and come up at the end with a 70-60 win that pretty much snuffed out St. Mary's fading playoff hopes.
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