Note: Again, apologies for being so late with getting this one in with the Thanksgiving holiday and "Beat 'SC" week going on. Had a wisdom tooth pulled here last night so laid off sick today which gives me an opportunity to finally get caught up. :)
Was back over at Northwestern's Ericksen Center on this Tuesday evening of "Beat 'SC" week to take in the interconference clash between visiting Macalester of the MIAC and host Northwestern of the UMAC. This would be my first look at the Scots this season so I really wasn't quite sure what to expect; particularly with junior guard Grace Dickman out for this game with an injury. Northwestern on the other hand was having a mixed bag in the early season schedule. After the loss to Augsburg, the Eagles also dropped a home contest to Buena Vista out of the IIAC before righting the ship and knocking off another MIAC opponent - Hamline - the previous Saturday.
Predictably, Northwestern Head Coach Aaron Kahl had his squad in its usual 2-3 "match-up" zone defense which paid dividends in the first period as the Scots struggled mightily from the perimeter. With the Eagles holding a slim 4-3 advantage after senior forward Courtney Cunard connected with a lay-up in transition at the 6:11 mark, sophomore guard Amy Berglund knocked down a jumper from the top of the key with 3:26 left and then the Springfield, Virginia native was able to get into the paint for a score for an 8-3 Northwestern advantage and Macalester Head Coach (and former U of Minnesota standout) Kelly Roysland called a thirty-second timeout to get her squad calmed down and reorganized. Still, the Eagles maintained their hot hand to provide an exclamation point for the first period. Freshman reserve guard Taryn Tumbleson connected with a lay-up in transition with :40 left and a "3" from the right wing by the Mo Valley, Iowa native Cunard with just :00.8 left on the clock gave Northwestern a ten-point edge at 13-3 as the first period ended.
Two Berglund freebies at the 9:14 mark of the second period increased the Eagle lead to 15-3 before Macalester was able to remove the lid from the bucket. Consecutive scores by sophomore post Regan Fruh - an offensive rebound and putback at the 7:51 mark and a pretty turnaround shot off the glass right at the 7:00 mark - sliced some of the fat off the deficit momentarily but Northwestern was able to find yet another offensive push. Junior guard Tiffany Stubbs knocked down a "3" from the right top area at the 6:43 mark and fellow junior reserve forward Emily VanLith used her 5'9" frame to get into the paint for a score with 4:23 left for a 20-10 Eagle advantage. Berglund snared an offensive rebound for a putback with 3:48 left and VanLith got into the paint for another score with 3:08 left for a 24-13 Northwestern lead. The Scots, however, maintained their composure and slowly whittled away at the lead down the stretch. Fruh got into the paint for a score with 2:55 left and then sophomore reserve guard Vivi Gregorich finally found her range from downtown; banging home a "3" from the left top area with 2:10 left that had Macalester back to within single digits trailing 26-18. Lanky sophomore reserve guard Leah Gray surprised the Ericksen Center gathering when she drilled a "3" from the left top area with 1:16 left that reduced the Eagles lead down to 28-21. Junior forward Park Masterson's score in the paint with :33 left gave the Scots renewed hope and confidence going into the locker room at the half trailing 30-23.
Northwestern still appeared to be on the safe side of things early on the third period. Senior post Regan Cooper; held to just two points in the first half, snared an offensive rebound of her own miss for a putback at the 9:19 mark and was also able to to connect on a lay-up at the 7:58 mark that maintained the seven-point edge at 34-27. The Eagles got their lead back up to ten points on back-to-back scores by Berglund: a short jumper at the 7:19 mark and a lay-up at the 6:43 mark that drew a foul and allowed her to sink the obligatory free throw to make it 39-29. But a resilient Macalester squad hung tough and proceeded to go on a 9-0 burst of their own. Junior guard Lauren Clamage drove into the lane for a finish at the 5:45 mark and then Gray struck again from three-point land; this one coming from the top of the key with 4:20 left that sliced Northwestern's lead down to five a 39-34. Gregorich got one freebie to go down after being fouled with 3:32 left and then the Boulder, Colorado native drained a "3" from the left top area with 2:57 left that suddenly cut the Eagle lead down to a scant point at 39-38. Northwestern tried to pull itself out of trouble on scores by sophomore reserve guard Jessica Cole and VanLith but Masterson connected on a short jumper with :25 left in the third period that had the Eagles hanging onto a perilous 43-42 edge.
A Cole jumper from the right corner at the 9:50 mark of the fourth period had Northwestern up by three once again at 45-42 but at the 9:14 mark, Gray; the San Rafael, California native, lit up the scoreboard with another "3"; this one coming from the top of the key that knotted up the score at 45-all. Tumbleson responded for the Eagles with her pretty "3" from the left corner at the 7:53 mark that gave Northwestern a bit of breathing room again at 48-45 but the Scots were in no mood to go away so easily. A Masterson score in the paint at the 7:30 mark and a short jumper by Clamage at the 6:54 mark had Macalester in that one-point range; trailing 50-49. Clamage's lay-up at the 6:26 mark gave the Scots their first lead since the early moments of the contest at 51-50 and now things began to look very uncertain for the host team. With their backs to the wall, the Eagles responded as Stubbs hit a clutch "3" from the left corner at the 6:14 mark and at the 5:12 left the Ames, Iowa native knocked down another trey - this one from the top of the key that had Northwestern back up by five at 56-51. Roysland called a timeout to prevent this one from getting away too quickly from the Scots and the strategy nearly paid off. Fruh scored in the paint with 4:34 left and a jumper by Gray from the left wing with 4:00 left once again reduced the Eagle advantage to a dicey one-point 56-55 lead. With 2:49 left, senior guard Erin Murray connected on a lay-up in transition that gave Macalester a 57-56 lead and when Cooper couldn't connect on a jumper attempt on the ensuing possession for Northwestern, Kahl called a timeout with 1:54 left to try and prevent panic from setting in. The strategy worked. Cooper got fouled with 1:42 left and calmly sank two free throws to put the Eagles back out in front at 58-57. Still plenty of time for Macalester to respond but a turnover by Fruh on the ensuing possession thwarted those hopes. But the Eagles were unable to capitalize on the opportunity to get a bit more breathing room and this gave the Scots one last shot. With :18 left, Gray got an opening in the left wing area behind the arc and let loose with a good shot but it refused to fall and the rebound went to Northwestern senior guard Kim Campbell. Another Kahl timeout and then the Eagles; trying to milk the clock, got the ball to Cunard who was fouled with :08.5 left that gave her a chance to get insurance freebies. Cunard got the first one to go down for a 59-57 lead but the second attempt rattled out and Masterson grabbed the defensive rebound for the Scots as they quickly dashed down the other end for one last attempt. Gregorich got the ball outside the arc and with just :02 left and uncorked a prayer that harmlessly fell short and gave Northwestern a narrow 59-57 victory.
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