Made my way from Augsburg's Si Melby Hall over to Macalester's Leonard Center to take in the 3:00 P.M. contest between visiting St. Kate's and host Macalester. I got inside the Leonard Center and settled in with 3:34 left in the first half with St. Kate's up 19-16 in a tight game for Senior Day at Macalester.
Coming down the home stretch of the first half, the Wildcats had three chances to stretch out their slim lead at the charity stripe but each one of those opportunities came up empty and Macalester would capitalize. Sophomore point guard Erin Murray knocked down a jumper in the lane with 1:30 left that pulled the Scots to within one and then senior guard Carmen Whitehead picked the pocket of St. Kate's senior guard Kristen Lee and promptly dashed the other way for a lay-up that had Macalester up 20-19. St. Kate's had two late chances to retake the lead but a missed free throw by freshman forward Kennedy Jennings and a missed lay-up by junior guard Jenna Mistler kept the score right where it was by the halftime buzzer.
Macalester threatened to put the Wildcats into an even bigger hole once the second half got underway. Senior post Veronika Jakubovie got into the paint for an easy score at the 19:00 mark and a lay-up in transition by Whitehead at the 16:44 mark gave the Scots a 24-19 advantage. St. Kates, which seemed to be stuck on the nineteen mark since seemingly B.C., finally busted out of its scoring slump when freshman phenom guard/forward LaShay Holt buried a "3" from the left wing at the 16:20 mark that drew the 'Cats to within two but a "3" from the Scots senior guard Emma Leyden from the right corner on the ensuing Macalester possession and another easy score in the paint for Jakubovie had Macalester up 29-22 by the 15:04 mark and there was definitely cause for concern for the St. Kate's contingent.
But Holt and her Wildcat teammates eased those concerns over the next four minutes as St. Kate's proceeded to embark on an 11-0 scoring bash; fueled by two treys from Holt that not only had the Wildcats back out in front but seemed to take away any momentum that Macalester had established in the opening moments of the second half. To their credit, the Scots battled back to eventually deadlock things at 35-all thanks to two short-range jumpers by Whitehead by the 10:11 mark. But it was at this point where the 'Cats began to put just enough distance between themselves and their sometimes too-gracious host. And the big reason was Holt as she was able to create opportunities that would lead to a score or get her to the charity stripe. The former St. Paul Humboldt standout made a hard drive along the left baseline for a finish with 5:51 left that gave the Wildcats a 39-35 advantage. Torgerson, the former Anoka standout, got into the paint for a score with 2:48 left to maintain that four-point cushion at 41-37 and then snared a huge steal and dashed the other way where she was fouled in a transition attempt and was able to make one of the obligatory free throws which also had St. Kate's in the double-bonus with just 1:51 left. While not facing an insurmountable deficit, Macalester could never get enough shots to fall when they needed them; a Leyden "3" from the left wing with :35 left drew the Scots to within three at 44-41 but both Holt and Kristen Lee were able to knock down free throws as Macalester was forced to foul. Jakubovie was able to cap her last home game for Macalester by getting a shot in the paint to fall with just under a second left but it was not nearly enough as St. Kate's was able to claim a 49-43 victory.
While perhaps not the "prettiest" of wins out there - and St. Kate's Head Coach Sean Pinkerton referred to it as "ugly" at times - it's still an important step forward for this fledgling program that has suffered its share of rough times the last few years. And any "W" at this point of the season will be a welcomed one without any concern for the esthetics of it. Meanwhile, a rough, rough year for Macalester as they're playing out the string as well. I think, for them anyway, its doubly tough as they're getting ready to bid farewell to seven seniors that have been an integral part of the program and have endured the rough patches. No doubt it will be a busy off-season for Head Coach Ellen Thompson as she must find the right recruits who can not only make an immediate impact on her team but can also meet the rigorous academic standards that are in place at an institution such as Macalester. But Thompson has had to go through this before more than once and anyone who knows the MIAC knows that her 2009-10 team was arguably the best team in the conference at one point in that season. Bet on Thompson to be able to do that again at some point.
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