Was back over at UST's Anderson Athletic Center on this sunny January Saturday afternoon for this all-important MIAC clash between first place UST and visiting Concordia which was right on the heels of the three teams (UST, SMU & Bethel) just in front of them. The Cobbers had earned a hard-fought six point win up at CSB on Wednesday night and another long roadie down to the Twin Cities to take on the mighty Tommies would certainly be a stern test.
Both teams traded jabs early on with UST sophomore guard Katie Stone and Concordia senior guard Erika both knocking down three-point shots early on that had the two teams tied at 5-all by the 17:58 mark. The Tommies were then able to open up a bit of a lead after scores in the paint by senior guard Kelly Brandenburg and senior All-American forward Taylor Young and a running jumper in the lane by Stone that had the Tommies up 11-5 by the 16:12 mark. Concordia junior guard Alley Fisher answered with a "3" from the left wing at the 15:50 mark but the Tommies were able to rebuild the lead and extend it to as much as seven at 15-8 after Stone snared a steal from the Cobbers and dashed the other way for an easy lay-up at the 13:31 mark.
But this resourceful Concordia team could not be kept down for very long and they slowly but surely clawed their way right back into the thick of things. Another "3" by Jossart; this one from the top of the key at the 12:49 mark coupled with a lay-up in transition freshman reserve guard Emma Peterson brought the Cobbers to within two at 15-13 by the 12:26 mark. UST senior post Maggie Weiers connected with a lay-up just before the midway point to up the Tommie lead to four at 19-15 but the Cobbers would get it back to a one possession game shortly thereafter and keep it in that range for the most part over the next six minutes; thanks to timely three-point shooting by sophomore reserve guard Olivia Johnson and Fisher plus the presence of both senior post Alexandra Lippert and fellow senior reserve post Kelsey Walloch. UST would twice earn five-point leads in the home stretch of the first half - once when Stone knocked down a jumper from the left top area with 4:28 left and then again at the 4:08 mark when Stone; the Eau Claire, Wisconsin native, connected with a lay-up for a 31-26 Tommie lead. But again, the Cobbers were able to get it to a one possession game again with 3:01 left when lanky junior forward Erin Januschka maneuvered into the paint for a score that cut the Tommie lead to 31-29. UST would counter one more time when Brandenburg was able to get inside for a score with 1:21 left so the Cobbers had to settle for being down four at 33-29 by halftime.
The good vibes that the Cobbers were feeling during the first half quickly evaporated once the second half got underway. Lippert; reverting momentarily back to her salad days at Concordia, promptly picked up her third foul and, to make matters worse, Jossart followed suit shortly thereafter. UST responded with a 7-0 spurt as Brandenburg knocked down a short jumper at the 18:58 mark and followed that up with a steal and lay-up the other way at the 18:12 mark for a 37-29 Tommie lead. Stone then drilled a "3" from the right wing at the 17:35 mark for a 40-29 UST advantage and Concordia Head Coach Jessica Rahman; sensing that things could suddenly go kablooey for her squad, quickly called a thirty-second timeout to assess the damage and have her squad regroup.
Whatever was said in that timeout must have lit a fire under the Cobbers because they came out of that short pow-wow with a newfound determination that totally turned this game around. Freshman guard Greta Walsh made a hard drive along the right baseline and finished underneath at the 16:20 mark and then Fisher reigned terror from behind the arc again at the 14:26 mark with one of her patented "3's"; this one from the left corner that cut the Tommie bulge to six points at 40-34. UST Head Coach Ruth Sinn, now sensing possible trouble herself, called a thirty-second timeout to discuss the situation with her team but could not light the same fire for the Tommies. Walloch was able to score inside at the 13:44 mark and then the 5'8" Peterson out of Benson somehow managed to tip-in a missed Cobber shot in a whole lot of traffic down low at the 11:49 mark that now had it back to a one possession game again at 40-38.
But perhaps the biggest difference in this dramatic turnaround of events from a Concordia standpoint was the resolve by the 6'4" senior Lippert to come in and make the most of things even if she had a few fouls saddled on her. She got into the paint for a score at the 11:23 mark that nullified two freebies by UST's Weiers a bit earlier. Then it was Johnson draining a "3" from the right corner at the 10:43 mark that not only gave Concordia it's first lead since the very early stages of the ballgame at 43-42 but had the Concordia bench and fans roaring. Another foray into the paint and finish by the fearless (and experienced) Lippert and then yet another "3" from Fisher who was left open at the top of the key at the 9:03 mark upped the advantage to 48-44. This amazing 21-4 run by the Cobbers was completed at the 8:14 mark when Fisher canned two free throws after getting fouled that had Concordia up 50-44.
But the Cobbers were far from finished on making their mark on this day. They clamped down on defense as well and made life miserable for Weiers, Young and Brandenburg on every Tommie possession. Weiers did connect with a short turnaround jumper in the lane for the Tommies with 5:17 left that trimmed the Concordia lead to 53-49 but the Cobbers simply slammed the door shut on any notion the Tommies may have had about usurping control of this contest. Jossart made two freebies after getting fouled with 4:26 left that now had Concordia in the double-bonus the rest of the way. A drive and finish by Walloch with 3:50 left upped the Cobber advantage to eight at 57-49 and then back to back scores in the paint by Lippert now had Concordia up by eleven at 61-49 with 2:36 left. An exasperated Sinn called another timeout in hopes of pulling off a miracle with the sands of time draining down but it was not to be. The Tommies did provide a few flickers of hope very late when Brandenburg was able to score inside with :56 left and the Tommies were able to snare a steal and get the rock to junior guard Laura Margarit who knocked down a "3' from the left wing with :46 left but both Johnson and Fisher were able to knock down insurance free throws when the Tommies had no choice but to foul and Concordia pulled off the shocker of the day in the MIAC claiming a 71-58 road win at UST.
An elated Rahman admitted afterward that she said nothing extraordinarily special during that critical thirty-second timeout early in the second half when the Cobbers were in big trouble. "I just told the team that we needed great team effort and they responded." She also felt that they had tremendous effort on defense and that obviously helped turned the tide in this one. An equally happy and elated Lippert was basking in the moment afterward with family and friends and she admitted that she felt that she's come a long way since her early days at Concordia. Despite getting that third foul early in the second half, she finished with just four fouls and was an integral part of this comeback today and it gives you an idea of how far she's come along from her early days as a Cobber. "We just knew we had to come out with great effort" she stated about that early second half timeout. Suddenly the Cobbers find themselves as part of a four-horse race for the conference crown along with UST, Bethel and SMU. And I personally think it's a great thing because it just shows you how incredibly strong this conference really is and I hope that all four of these teams have a shot to get a ticket into that magical March Dance.
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