Made the easy trip over to Augsburg’s Si Melby Hall on
this pleasant (temperature-wise anyway) January Saturday afternoon to take in
this key 1:00 P.M. clash between visiting Macalester and host Augsburg. The Scots, which came limping into this game
with a 1-6 record in the MIAC (2-8 overall) were hoping to recapture the magic
that they found this last Monday night down in St. Peter when they knocked off
GAC. Augsburg, meanwhile, was hoping to
build on the momentum that they’ve been able to establish with the new year to
keep the beat going and, just as important, get themselves back into that MIAC
playoff race.
And the Auggies would waste little time in setting the
tone in this one as they built a 6-2 lead behind sophomore forward Jessica
Lillquist doing damage in the paint and fellow sophomore Jenna Orth’s sweet
behind the head shot underneath the basket.
Two scores in the paint as well by reserve sophomore post Bridget Kopp –
one at the 14:01 mark and then the second at the 12:27 mark – plus another
score in the paint by Lillquist at the 11:35 mark that got her fouled in the
process and allowed her to make the obligatory freebie made it a 13-2 game and had
Macalester Head Coach Ellen Thompson quickly calling a timeout to assess this
alarming situation for her squad.
Certainly this good showing by Augsburg early on had to
be pleasing for the alums in the stands who were on hand on this day as they
played in the Alumni game earlier – Rosinta Stromquist, Brietta Schluender,
Kristina (Lurken) Anderson and her younger sister Marissa among others were all
taking it in. Macalester, on the other
hand, was struggling mightily from the perimeter in the early going and it wasn’t
until reserve senior guard Erika Weimann came into the contest at about the
midway point of the first half that the Scots could find some sort of spark
offensively. The Bemidji native banged
home a “3” from the top of the key off the glass with 10:10 left and then found
the range again from the right wing area with 8:13 left that got the Scots
closer trailing 15-8. But the Auggies
had no intention of letting this one get away from them and promptly
responded. Do-it-all junior guard Abbey
Luger drilled a “3” of her own from the right corner after snaring a long offensive
rebound with 7:35 left which was followed by a lay-up from senior guard/forward
Jill Tichy with 7:03 left had Augsburg back up by double digits at 20-8. Then Lillquist went back to work again to put
the Scots further in the hole. One score
in the paint with 5:02 left followed by two free throws with 3:35 left had the
Auggies up by fourteen at 24-10. Two
scores by Macalester freshman post Park Masterson would not deter Lillquist as
she connected with a jumper from the left wing area with 2:56 left and then the
Sebeka native would complete her fine first half with a lay-up with :49
left. Senior reserve forward Carly Wolf’s
jumper from the right corner with :14.2 left allowed Augsburg to take a 30-16
lead into the locker room at the half.
The Auggies looked to build on the results of a good
first half and Lillquist’s score in the paint that got her fouled and allowed
her to sink the resulting charity stripe right off the bat at the 18:38 mark
upped the advantage to seventeen at 33-16.
A score inside by Tichy at the 16:21 mark and then two jumpers by Luger –
a medium-range one from the right side at the 15:42 mark and a short jumper at
the 15:11 mark – built the lead to 39-20.
Macalester would make jabs here and there – an offensive rebound and
putback by reserve senior guard Carmen Whitehead and another “3” from Weimann
from the right corner at the 12:37 mark – but they could never get on a big run
that might have changed the complexion of the game. Sophomore guard Jenna Orth knocked down a
jumper from the right corner just inside the arc at the 12:02 mark and yet
another strong move and finish in the paint by Lillquist with 9:18 left that
was followed by a “3” from Tichy from the left corner with 8:26 left ballooned
the Augsburg advantage to 51-29.
Scot sophomore guard Erin Murray, who had struggled with
her shooting in this one, finally began to find the range that she had been
seeking since the opening tip. She connected
with a jumper from the right elbow with 8:02 left and then drilled a “3’ from
the right wing with 7:27 left. Another
jumper by the Sparta, Wisconsin native with 6:26 left helped Macalester edge a
bit closer but they would not have the same magic that they had on Monday night
down in St. Peter. One free throw from
Lillquist with 5:58 left and then two charity stripe shots from senior guard
Jolene Blood who was arguably playing at about 85% on this day as she was not
feeling well kept the margin safe at 57-38 with 5:23 left. Reserve sophomore Ashley Anfinson then
knocked down a “3” from the left wing area with 3:40 left that effectively
ended any chance Macalester may have had as the Auggies were back up by twenty
at 60-40. Augsburg Head Coach Bill McKee
was able to put his reserves on the floor in the final minutes and the Auggies
booked a relatively easy 63-46 victory that upped their MIAC record to 3-4 and
right back into the thick of things in the MIAC playoff race.
Augsburg Assistant Coach Joshua Hersch spoke of the
favorable schedule coming into the New Year and how important it was for the
team to be able to take advantage of it.
So far, they have and another big home game with Carleton this coming
Wednesday night is now in their sights. Lillquist
finished this game with a career high 24 points which helped pave the way to
victory but I personally feel that a lot of credit has to go to Luger as
well. She simply has a knack of being in
the right place at the right time to make good things happen for her team. She obviously can score (she had 9 on this
day) but what often gets overlooked is that she can rebound as well and she had
ten rebounds on this afternoon (3 offenseive and 7 defensive). She plays lights out defense and knows how to
get her teammates involved in the offense and helps make them better. I guess what I’m saying here is that while
she likely isn’t the favorite for MIAC MVP this season, you’ve simply GOT to
include her in the discussion when that time rolls around.
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