Bethany Lutheran vs Macalester 12-30-16

My last stop for calendar year 2016 happened to be back at Macalester College's Leonard Center for yet another UMAC-MIAC inter-conference clash between visiting Bethany Lutheran and host Macalester.  I wasn't really sure what to expect from this game given that the Vikings were coming into this contest in the midst of a so-so season at 4-6 overall (1-3 in the UMAC) while the Scots were 6-4 overall and 1-3 in MIAC play.  So it was really a matter of expecting the unexpected which, in many ways, is exactly what happened.

Bethany Lutheran would grab an early 4-2 lead on the strength of a score in the paint by junior forward Brooke Henning at the 9:14 mark and a lay-up by sophomore guard Haley Sandin at the 8:47 mark and a free throw by senior guard Minnie Frederick-Childress at the 8:23 mark had the Vikings up 5-4.  Macalester would come right back and take an 8-5 lead on an offensive rebound and putback by junior post Regan Fruh at the 8:08 mark along with a lay-up by junior guard Leah Gray at the 7:23 mark.  Though the Vikings would trim the deficit to one point and a pretty drive and finish by junior reserve forward Dakota Ellinghuysen at the 6:28 mark, the Scots managed to build a bit of a cushion when Gray drained a "3" from the left corner at the 6:16 mark that drew a foul and allowed the San Rafael, California native to sink the obligatory free throw for a four-point play and a 12-7 lead and an offensive rebound and putback by Fruh at the 5:49 mark got the lead to 14-7.  Bethany Lutheran came right back with back-to-back three-point bombs - one by Frederick-Childress from the left top area at the 5:29 mark and another one by Sandin with 3:36 left that sliced the deficit to one point at 14-13.  Junior reserve guard Rachel Sorensen capped this 9-0 burst when she was able to maneuver into the paint for a score and draw a foul and the Windom native's ensuing freebie suddenly had the Vikings back on top 16-14 with 2:27 left.  Bethany Lutheran would maintain a small edge over the next minute until Scot freshman guard Holly Hull drained a "3" from the left wing area with :51 left for a 19-18 Macalester lead and a jumper from the top just inside the arc by reserve senior guard Lauren Clamage with :27 left in the opening period got the lead to 21-18.  Fittingly, the Vikings would close to one point on two Sandin charity stripe shots with just :03.1 left in the opening period that made it a 21-20 game that gave a clear indication of the back-and-forth affair.  

Ever so slowly, the Scots would begin to build a bit of a cushion as the second period progressed. Both sides started the new period trading blows from three-point land - Clamage with one for Macalester from the right top area at the 8:49 mark and Frederick-Childress for Bethany Lutheran from the left top area at the 8:23 mark - that had the Scots up 24-23.  The Vikings, however, would gradually lose ground as two free throws by senior forward Park Masterson at the 8:07 mark and a lay-up in transition by Clamage that drew a foul and allowed the Lake Forest, Illinois native to sink the obligatory free throw at the 7:09 mark had Macalester up by six at 29-23.  Bethany Lutheran would try to get closer as Frederick-Childress drained another three-point bomb - this one from the left wing area at the 6:43 mark but the Scots were a bit better at steadying the ship.  Back-to-back scores by Fruh - an offensive rebound and putback at the 6:20 mark and a score in the paint at the 5:52 mark - got the lead back up to seven at 33-26 and a short jumper by Clamage with 4:53 left maintained that seven-point edge at 35-28.  The Vikings would again try to make inroads as a "3" from the left wing area by Sorensen with 4:01 left cut the deficit down to four at 35-31 but Macalester answered on a "3" from the left wing area by their three-point specialist - junior guard Vivi Gregorich - with 3:42 left that got the lead back up to seven at 38-31.  The ever-improving Clamage would snare a steal and dash the other way for a lay-up with 3:09 left that pushed the lead to nine at 40-31 and a Clamage "3" from the right corner with 1:05 left maintained the nine-point edge and allowed the Scots to take a 43-34 lead into the locker room at the half.  A quick check of the first half box score shows some interesting numbers.  Bethany Lutheran was on fire from behind the arc in the first half shooting 54.5% but shot only 66.7% from the charity stripe - which likely goes a long way in explaining the halftime score as it was.  Rebounds were nearly even as Macalester held a 20-18 edge there although the Vikings had 13 turnovers in the first half compared to the Scots 10.

Despite a Frederick-Childress score in the paint at the 9:53 mark of the third period that temporarily narrowed the gap to seven points at 43-36, things began spiral downward for Bethany Lutheran. Back-to-back scores in the paint by Fruh - one at the 9:41 mark and then again at the 9:14 mark - gave the Scots their first double-digit lead at 47-36.  One Fruh freebie at the 8:24 mark and a score in the paint by Masterson at the 6:58 mark pushed the lead to twelve at 50-38.  Sandin would single-handedly try to bring the Vikings closer with her drive and finish that drew a foul and allowed her to sink a free throw at the 6:23 mark but a Fruh lay-up at the 6:10 mark and another Clamage three-point bomb - this one from the top of the key at the 5:22 mark - pushed the Macalester lead to 55-41. Two Fruh charity stripe shots with 4:54 left and yet another Clamage three-point dagger - this one from the left corner with 3:59 left - gave the Scots a 60-44 advantage.  Senior reserve forward Emilie McGuire snared an offensive rebound for a putback with 3:19 left and two Gregorich free throws with 2:50 left gave Macalester their biggest lead of the night at 64-44 and all could have been lost for the Vikings right then and there.  But Bethany Lutheran managed to dig in their heels and slice a bit of fat off of the deficit before the end of the period.  Two Sorensen free throws with 2:32 left and a Sorensen "3" from the right wing area with 2:19 left trimmed the Scot lead down to 66-49 and although the Scots would manage to build the lead to twenty again on a "3" from the left wing by Hull with 1:38 left and a Hull drive and finish that drew a foul and sent the Overland Park, Kansas native to the line for the ensuing freebie for a 74-54 Macalester lead, the Vikings kept chipping away. Sandin dropped two free throws of her own with 1:05 left and then made good on a drive and finish with :40 left in the period that trimmed the Scot lead down to 74-58.  Senior forward Anna Balcom knocked down a short jumper from the left side with :12 left that drew Bethany Lutheran a bit closer trailing 74-60 and although a McGuire jumper from the left elbow gave the Scots a 76-60 lead going into the fourth period, there was now a bit more reason for hope from the visitors from Mankato.

That hope was bolstered on two quick Viking scores to open the fourth period.  A short jumper from the left side by Ellinghuysen at the 8:30 mark and a steal and lay-up the other way by Frederick-Childress that drew a foul and sent the Flint, Michigan native to the line for the obligatory free throw at the 8:18 mark cut that one-time twenty-point deficit nearly in half to 76-65.  A Gregorich three-point bomb from the left top area at the 6:20 mark appeared to stop this Bethany Lutheran comeback attempt as the Scots lead was pushed back up to 79-65.  But a 9-0 Viking push then ensued.  The speedy Frederick-Childress connected with a lay-up at the 6:06 mark and two Sandin charity stripe shots at the 5:43 mark cut Macalester's lead down to ten at 79-69.  Henning's lay-up in transition at the 5:24 mark got Bethany Lutheran back to within single-digit range at 79-71 and Scot Head Coach Kelly Roysland knew full and well that a timeout was in order to keep this one from slipping away. Still, Sandin would drain a "3" from the right top area that drew the Vikings tantalizingly close trailing 79-74.  Alas, that's as close as Bethany Lutheran would get as the Scots would turn away this unlikely comeback attempt as Macalester acted with a sense of urgency.  A Gregorich jumper from the right wing area with 4:51 left started a game-changing 14-3 run.  Clamage delivered another three-point dagger from the right corner with 4:22 left and Gregorich did the same from the top of the key with 3:47 left for an 87-74 Scot lead.  A Gregorich jumper in the lane with 3:04 left and two pairs of Clamage freebies with 2:42 and 2:10 left pushed the lead to 93-77 and Viking Head Coach Lyle Jones knew his squad had hit the point of no return and called a timeout in hopes of reversing things once more.  But now Macalester was on a roll as a Fruh score in the paint with 1:47 left and a Clamage lay-up with 1:00 left made it a 97-79 game and two Gregorich free throws with :48.8 left had the Scots on the brink of the century mark with a 99-79 lead.  One Hull free throw with :40.3 left got Macalester there and two more charity stripe shots for good measure by Gregorich with :22.4 gave the Scots a 102-83 win.

I haven't had the chance to go through the Macalester records yet but for all the years I've watched the Scots, this is the first time I've ever seen them hit the century mark or surpass it and I asked Roysland about it afterward.  She smiled a little and simply replied that they came close to doing that when they played North Central a year ago.  Still, I think it's a satisfying win to close out the calendar year for the Scots and has to certainly give them a boost of confidence before they dive head-first into MIAC play after the first of the year; especially considering that not only junior guard Grace Dickman is still out indefinitely and now freshman reserve guard Tyana Loiselle has apparently joined her on the IR list as well.  Bethany Lutheran isn't without its injury problems either and Jones confided to me afterward that both his two top guards (presumably Sandin and Frederick-Childress) are battling through nagging injuries and haven't been quite the same.  Having those two healthy will certainly bolster the Vikings hopes as they move into UMAC play after the first of the year.  And I'm sure Jones wishes he could have graduated former player Briana Brandts who was in attendance cheering on her former teammates in uniform again as well.  Both teams had several scorers in double figures on this night.  Leading the way for Macalester was Clamage with her 30 points (a career high for her) followed by Fruh with her 25 points while Gregorich had 21 points and Hull added 12.  Sandin led the way for Bethany Lutheran with her 25 points while Frederick-Childress was right behind with 23 points and Sorensen added 11 points.  The Scots wound up having a decided advantage on the boards at 44-31 and I think the only downer of this game was that it got to be a foul-fest with a total of 43 fouls called.