After getting out of UST, I battled my way on those
God-forsaken St. Paul streets and safely back onto I-94 to get my way back over
to Augsburg’s Si-Melby Hall for the 3:00 P.M. game between the host Auggies and
visiting St. Scholastica. I got myself
settled in the stands alongside St. Kate’s Head Coach Sean Pinkerton and his
assistant Tim Kjar with 5:15 left in the first half with Augsburg holding a
15-13 lead in what looked to be a very tight, close game.
The Auggies and Saints would stay close for the rest of
the first half as well. St. Scholastica
would threaten to take the initiative when freshman guard Kayla Swanson connected
with a lay-up in transition with 3:24 left that had the Saints up 19-16 but
Auggie sharp-shooting senior guard Jolene Blood’s free throws with 2:23 left
along with junior guard Abbey Luger’s freebie after being fouled in a
transition lay-up attempt knotted things up at 19 a piece. With the score tied at 21, up-and-coming
sophomore guard Marie Fitzgerald knocked down a “3” from the right top area
with :45 left for a 24-21 lead and the Auggies were able to take a slim 25-23
lead going into the locker room at the half.
On a down note, however, Blood had taken an inadvertent shot to the side
of her head in the latter moments of the first half and Augsburg Head Coach
Bill McKee could ill-afford to have his senior three-point specialist on the bench
in such a close affair.
Fortunately for the Auggies, Blood was back and ready to
go when the second half got underway and others were ready and willing to step
up as well. Senior guard/forward Jill
Tichy got the Auggie Express rolling with her drive into the paint and a
one-handed shot off the glass at the 19:36 mark. Reserve sophomore post Bridget Kopp connected
with a jumper at the charity stripe at the 16:22 mark and then Luger used her
quickness to get inside for a score at the 15:15 mark that had Augsburg up
33-25 and had St. Scholastica Head Coach Stacy Deadrick scratching her head as
she called a timeout to discuss things with her squad. But Luger almost single-handedly threatened
to put the Saints away for good herself.
She connected with a “3” from the left wing area at the 14:18 mark that,
coupled with a score inside by Kopp at the 13:04 mark, now had the Auggies up
38-29. A lay-up by the junior from
Oakdale at the 11:48 mark and then a drive and finish at the 10:22 mark seemed
to have Augsburg in the safe zone with a 43-33 lead. The Saints, however, managed to claw their
way back into the thick of things over the next two minutes. Junior guard Mariah Hovick snared an
offensive rebound for a putback and made a free throw after being fouled with
9:24 left. Senior post Caitlin McKernon’s
drive and finish got her fouled in the process and the ensuing charity stripe
shot allowed St. Scholastica to get to within three at 43-40. Another sore spot for the Auggies was that
Luger had missed the front end of three consecutive one-and-one opportunities
that may have kept the Saints at bay.
Instead, that safe zone for the Auggies was now gone for the moment.
The Saints’ sophomore guard Kelsey Sorensen Giffrow’s “3”
with 7:10 mark tied things up at 43-all with 7:10 left but that’s exactly where
St. Scholastica’s hopes ended as well.
Fitzgerald drained a “3” from the left wing with 6:47 left that put the
Auggies back out in front for good at 46-43 and then Blood swooped in for a
lay-up with 5:39 left. Free throws by
both Blood and Tichy along with another Blood lay-up with 3:58 left had
Augsburg back up by ten at 54-44. The
convincing blow by Augsburg was delivered by none other than Fitzgerald with
3:12 left as she knocked down a “3’ from the right wing as the shot clock
expired for a 57-44 Auggie advantage that the Saints would not have any answers
for. Freebies by sophomore forward
Jessica Lillquist and Tichy sealed St. Scholastica’s fate on this snowy
Saturday afternoon as Augsburg was able to book a 62-48 win that now has the
Auggies sitting at .500 with a 3-3 record with a big conference clash next week
Saturday against GAC.
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