Midtown YWCA Women's College Summer League Results For Wednesday 6-20-18

Here's the results of the games I was able to cover last night at the Midtown YWCA Women's College Summer League:


5:55 P.M. Games

NIACC - 65
Southwest State - 60

UW-River Falls - 74
Winona State - 47


6:50 P.M. Games

St. Olaf - 52
GAC Gold - 39

GAC Black - 56
Hamline - 50


7:45 P.M. Games

Northwestern - 51
GAC Gold - 46

Rimshots - 58
St. Kate's - 37


I was lucky enough to get into the Midtown YWCA facility early enough to catch the ending of one of the 5:00 P.M. games where the Anoka-Ramsey team knocked off the Hamline 53-39.  In the 5:55 P.M. slot over on Court 1, the NIACC team was taking on a Southwest State team that had also played in the earlier 5:00 P.M. slot but the fatigue factor didn't seem to bother the gang from Marshall - at least early on anyway - as they jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead on the young group out of Mason City, Iowa.  But the NIACC team wasted little time in getting their run-and-gun style going and they quickly closed the gap to two points at 9-7 midway through the first period.  The Southwest State team managed to increase its safety net a bit with a 17-13 lead at the start of the second period but a quick 5-0 run by the NIACC team finally propelled them out in front 18-17 early in the second period.  The Southwest State team grudgingly reclaimed the lead at 26-24 midway through the second period but another run by the NIACC team down the stretch of the second period gave them a 36-28 lead at the halftime break.  The Southwest Minnesota State team indeed appeared in deep trouble when they found themselves down 44-35 midway through the third period and although they managed to cut the deficit down to seven points at 49-42 by the start of the fourth period, the NIACC team went on a quick 7-0 run to up that advantage to 56-42 and the Southwest Minnesota State team appeared buried.  They managed to climb back to within single digits late in the contest but it was simply a bridge too far for them this time around.  Another NSIC team that had played in the 5:00 P.M. slot - Winona State - also had double-duty in the 5:55 P.M. slot as they took on the UW-River Falls team.  Here, fatigue was definitely a factor as the UW-River Falls team built up a 13-6 lead midway through the first period and although the Winona State team cut the deficit to four points at 15-11 by the end of the first period, their fortunes quickly went south.  A big run by the UW-River Falls team put them up 31-13 midway through the second period and by the halftime break the UW-River Falls team was up 39-21.  By the end of the third period, the UW-River Falls team had stretched that lead to 55-34 and by the midway point of the fourth period, the UW-River Falls team's lead ballooned to 64-36 so there was little doubt as to how this one was going to end.

In the 6:50 P.M. slot over on Court 1, the GAC Gold team was taking on a short-handed St. Olaf team but the St. Olaf team was lucky enough to get some much-needed help from some members of the Winona State team who were probably wanting to do something positive after getting drubbed in the previous time slot.  Still, the GAC Gold team was able to jump out to a 6-0 lead midway through the first period and they increased the margin to eight points at 14-6 by the end of the first period.  But the St. Olaf team with something of a makeshift squad started whittling away at the deficit as the second period progressed and they managed to cut things down to five points at 23-18 midway through the second period and with less than two minutes remaining before the half, they had things tied up at 26 a piece and held a 28-26 lead by the halftime break.  Things were still reasonably tight throughout much of the third period and by the midway point it was still anyone's ballgame with the St. Olaf team up 33-30.  But the St. Olaf team managed to stretch things out a bit at 38-30 by the start of the fourth period and then the GAC Gold team curiously fell apart after that as the St. Olaf team stretched the lead to 48-30 midway through the fourth period enroute to an easy win.  Over on Court 2, the GAC Black team was taking on the Hamline team in what proved to be a very interesting contest.  The Hamline team held a 10-7 lead midway through the first period but the GAC Black team ended the opening period with a run that had them out in 17-13 by the start of the second period.  The GAC Black team seemed to have an edge throughout most of the second period and were up 26-20 late in the second period but back-to-back lay-ups in transition by the Hamline team helped cut the deficit down to a scant point at 26-25.  The GAC Black team, however, would get the last laugh before the halftime buzzer on a Hail Mary "3" (and unfortunately I had my head down writing when it happened so I didn't see who got it :p ) to get a 31-28 advantage for the halftime break.  The GAC Black team sought to take control of things once the third period got underway and a run put them up 41-31 midway through the third period.  But the Hamline team came right back with back-to-back three-point bombs to get right back into the thick of things down 41-37 late in the third period and by the start of the fourth period, the GAC Black team's lead was down to a precarious two points at 42-40.  The GAC Black team again seemed to have the upper hand throughout most of the fourth period but just when they thought they were safe, the Hamline team tried to make one last run at them.  A "3" by junior-to-be Kaeli Stayer cut the GAC Black team's lead down to solitary point at 49-48 with under 5:00 left.  Alas, that's as close as the Hamline team would get down the stretch as the GAC Black team held on for a narrow victory.

Another good game on this night took place in the 7:45 P.M. slot as the GAC Gold team was doing double-duty; this time taking on a very good Northwestern team made up largely of former Northwestern alums.  The GAC Gold team seemed to have things going its way early on as they held an 8-5 lead midway through the first period and increased the lead to six points at 15-9 by the start of the second period.  Things were still looking very good for the GAC Gold team midway through the second period as they held a 26-19 lead but the Northwestern team finally got its game going and a "3" by Tiffany Stubbs ('17) helped cut the GAC Black team's lead down to two at 26-24 late in the second period and by the halftime break the Northwestern team managed to push ahead by a 27-26 count.  A pretty turnaround jumper by recent grad Alex Peterson that resulted in a foul and the obligatory "and one" helped push the Northwestern team's lead to 34-30 midway through the second period and they maintained that four-point edge by the end of the third period by a 42-38 count.  A quick 7-0 run by the Northwestern team at the start of the fourth period spelled doom for the GAC Gold team as they found themselves down 49-38 and they never could get within striking distance again.  Another alumni team was also having its way over on Court 2 as the Rimshots team; a squad primarily of former Bethel players, built up an 11-6 lead on the St. Kate's team midway through the first period.  The St. Kate's team managed to crawl back to within a single possession down 13-10 by the start of the second period but they would soon find out that these former Bethel players still knew a thing or two about how to score as the Rimshots team upped their lead to seven points at 21-14 midway through the second period and had a double-digit advantage at 27-16 by the halftime break.  The Rimshots maintained the cushion and enjoyed a 32-22 lead midway through the third period and a "3" from the left wing area by Molly O'Toole helped expand that lead to 40-27 by the end of the third period.  By the midway point of the fourth period, the Rimshots team held a sizable 48-29 lead and never looked back.

I had to take off before the games in both the 8:40 and 9:35 P.M. slots took place and unfortunately I know I missed out on some good action but that's the life of a working man I guess.  Another full slate of games are on tap next Wednesday night at the Midtown YWCA Women's College Summer League so drop on down if you can.