St. Kate's vs UST 2-4-17

After leaving Macalester's Leonard Center, I made the quick drive on Summit Avenue over to Schoenecker Arena for the 3:00 P.M. game of the two neighborhood rivals - St. Kate's and host UST. I got settled into Schoenecker Arena at the 9:20 mark of the second period with St. Kate's up 14-10.

The one thing I wondered about the Tommies coming into this contest after Wednesday night's emotional soul-tugging win at GAC was if UST was due for a bit of a letdown coming into this contest against the Wildcats who made the short hope up Cleveland Avenue for this late-afternoon tilt.  This game seemed like the perfect "trap game" that often derails even the best of teams in all sports and the fact that St. Kate's was up 14-10 seemed to suggest that.  Tommie senior All-American post Kaitlin Langer cut the deficit to two points with her offensive rebound and putback at the 8:35 mark but St. Kate's got the lead back to four points again at 16-12 when junior guard Audra Clark made good on a drive and finish at the 8:09 mark.  UST eventually tied the game at 16 a piece thanks to Langer as she got into the paint for one score at the 6:50 mark and dropped two free throws at the 5:49 mark but the 'Cats were able to go on a 7-0 burst.  Senior reserve guard/forward Alexis Garcia scored on a pretty give-and-go lay-up at the 5:37 mark and Audra Clark was able to sneak into the paint for a score at the 5:01 mark.  Senior forward Mari Lee connected with a lay-up in transition with 4:27 left that also drew a foul and the former Dawson-Boyd standout's "and one" suddenly had St. Kate's up 23-16.  The Tommies awoke from their mid-afternoon slumber and answered this challenge with a 6-0 push that narrowed the gap to a single point.  Langer was able to connect with a short shot off the glass as the shot clock was expiring with 3:56 left and two free throws by sophomore reserve guard Lucia Renikoff with 3:24 left got UST back to within a single possession trailing 23-20.  Senior point guard Gabby Zehrer's lay-up in transition with 3:03 left cut the deficit to a scant point at 23-22 before the Wildcats got a bit more breathing room on a lay-up by flashy senior reserve guard/forward LaShay Holt with 2:44 left but another Zehrer lay-up with 2:33 left again cut the gap to a scant point for UST trailing 25-24.  St. Kate's looked to have the upper hand at the half when freshman guard Danica Cambrice knocked down a short jumper with 2:16 left for a 27-24 lead but the Tommies spoiled things for their neighborhood rival as junior guard/forward Lauren Fischer drained one of her patented three-point bombs - this one coming from the left wing area with just :00.7 before the buzzer as both teams headed for their respective locker rooms knotted at 27 a piece.  The first half box score reveals two other areas that were even as well:  Rebounds were the same at 16 for each team and both teams were guilty of nine turnovers as well.  The Wildcats shot a little better from FG range than UST did going 12-27 for 44.4% but conversely they shot only 1-7 from behind the arc for the first half for 14.3%.

A seeming cat and mouse game took center stage in the third period as each side traded small leads.  After senior guard Paige Gernes' one free throw put the Tommies up 28-27 at the 9:48 mark, Lee answered for St. Kate's with her jumper in the lane at the 8:20 mark for a 29-28 Wildcat lead.  UST junior guard Maddie Wolkow hit a jumper in the lane of her own at the 7:59 mark and one Langer freebie at the 7:28 mark gave the Tommies a 31-29 advantage.  Audra Clark was sent to the line on the ensuing St. Kate's possession as Gernes was tagged with her third foul of the afternoon and the former Kenyon-Wannamingo standout tied the game with two free throws at the 7:01 mark.  The Tommie's Renikoff returned the favor with one free throw at the 6:42 mark for a 32-31 UST lead and the Wildcats' Lee picked up her third foul of the day as well.  Garcia's score in the paint at the 6:26 mark put St. Kate's back out in front 33-32 but then the Tommies came right back at the 5:04 mark as Langer scored in the paint and drew a foul in the process and the "and one" had UST up 35-33.  Right back came the 'Cats as Audra Clark got sent to the charity stripe again with 4:18 left and her two free throws knotted things up at 35 a piece.  St. Kate's regained a two-point edge on Garcia's lay-up in transition with 3:55 left but an aggressive Tommie team got the ball to Langer down low on their ensuing possession and she was promptly fouled and the former Hill-Murray standout's two freebies had things leveled at 37-all.  UST finally was able to grab a bit of an advantage down the stretch of the period as Langer was able to snare an offensive rebound of her own miss for a putback with 3:15 left and two Gernes free throws with 2:32 left gave the Tommies a little bit of breathing room with a 41-38 lead.  Sophomore reserve post Hannah Spaulding's score off of an inbounds pass with 1:54 left maintained that three-point edge at 43-40 and one Gernes free throw with :41.5 left had UST up 44-40.  Holt was able to get to the line with :04.3 left in the third period and got one free throw to go down that kept the Wildcats within a single possession trailing 44-41 and for UST Head Coach Ruth Sinn and her staff, it had to be a bit disconcerting to see her squad mired in a tough contest after Wednesday night's emotional win at GAC.

And there was even more reason for worry in the early moments of the fourth period for Sinn and her staff as a 4-0 push by St. Kate's nudged the 'Cats back out in front.  Sophomore guard Kanani Asuncion's short shot off the glass at the 8:34 mark and a score in the paint by Lee at the 7:38 mark gave the Wildcats a 45-44 advantage.  It was Langer to the rescue for UST a short time later as she was able to score in the paint off of an inbounds pass and drew a foul in the process and her ensuing free throw put the Tommies back out in front 47-45.  Audra Clark was able to level the game again at 47-all for St. Kate's when she snared a steal and dashed the other way through traffic for a lay-up with 4:57 left and now the tension among the Tommie faithful inside Schoenecker Arena on this late afternoon was real and you couldn't help but wonder if UST was finally ripe to be an upset victim.  But just when the Tommies could have been vulnerable, their leaders stepped up and took charge when they had to.  Zehrer calmly drained a "3" from the right top area after getting an open look with 4:10 left and after a foiled Wildcat possession, Fischer was able to get into the paint for a score with 3:12 left that suddenly made this a two-possession game at 52-47.  St. Kate's was unable to answer on its next possession and Renikoff was fouled with 2:18 left and her two free throws made it a 54-47 game.  Senior forward Kennedy Jennings' score in the paint with 2:02 left narrowed the deficit down to five points for the Wildcats at 54-49 and St. Kate's Head Coach Sean Pinkerton called a thirty-second timeout to set up strategy but it was now imperative that they get stops and try to avoid fouling as well if possible.  And who do you think UST would turn to when they needed an insurance bucket?  Langer, of course, and she was able to maneuver into the paint for a score with 1:34 left that made it 56-49 that, for all intents and purposes, was the game.  Jennings would again score for the Wildcats with 1:16 left that trimmed the deficit down to five points again at 56-51 but time was no longer on their side.  Gernes got another insurance score for the Tommies with :47 left with her jumper from the right elbow area and pairs of free throws by Fischer with :37.2 and :26.4 left sealed the deal for UST as they claimed a tough 62-53 victory to move to 20-0 on the year and 14-0 in MIAC play.

I couldn't resist asking both Sinn and Assistant Coach Brian Silk afterward if there might have been a letdown effect after the big and emotional win at GAC on Wednesday night and both seemed to pooh-pooh the notion.  Silk pointed out that each team brings different match-ups and different problems to figure out.  He was especially proud of his squad's defensive effort and how they held the dynamic Holt of St. Kate's to eight points and for someone who normally averages 17.7 points per game, that's tough to do.  I asked Sinn about how tough it was going to be to finish up these two tough games (GAC and St. Kate's) and then get up the first thing on Sunday morning for a trip down to Decorah, Iowa to face IIAC powerhouse Luther.  She responded by asking me with a smile that, if I were a player, would I rather prepare myself for a mundane practice or a big game like they have on Sunday. I couldn't help but smile either and responded with the latter.  And one of the things that makes this UST team so good is that they simply thrive on challenges like this and respond in a positive manner rather than dreading it.  And, as Sinn pointed out on Wednesday night after the win at GAC, it's opportunities like this that help prepare them for what likely lies ahead in March.  Just another day at the office for Langer who finished up this afternoon with 23 points to lead all scorers.  Fischer had nine points but perhaps more importantly, grabbed 14 rebounds; 13 of those on the defensive end.  Audra Clark was the only scorer in double figures for St. Kate's on this day.  The Tommies owned the glass in the second half and finished the contest with a 43-30 edge in the rebounding department. One thing that had to make the Wildcat's Pinkerton wince was another stat that stood out - second chance points - where UST had a decided 14-2 advantage.  And a lot of that was because of Langer who is almost impossible to guard one-on-one down low.