The first game for me of this new 2025-26 season had me running over to Si Melby Hall on the campus of Augsburg University to cover an early season matchup between visiting Northwestern out of the UMAC and host Augsburg. The Eagles were coming into this game hungry; looking for a win after starting this new season with losses to Central out of the ARC and two other MIAC opponents - Hamline and Carleton. The Auggies meanwhile were coming into this contest having split a pair of games against two different UMAC opponents - beating Martin Luther at home but dropping a 72-52 decision at Bethany Lutheran this last Saturday.
Augsburg would draw first blood in this contest at the 9:43 mark of the opening period when junior guard and former Anoka-Ramsey standout Sydney Hazuga buried a "3" from the left wing area but the Eagles would be quick to answer as junior forward Carli Elrod would connect on a lay-up at the 8:35 mark and speedy freshman guard Ella Frazier would follow suit with a lay-up of her own at the 7:57 mark that had Northwestern up 4-3. The Auggies would retake the lead as sophomore guard Evelyn Perkins weaved her way into the paint for a score at the 7:42 mark and a tough jumper from the left wing area by Hazuga at the 7:05 mark pushed Augsburg back in front 7-4. Right back came the Eagles as one lay-up by sophomore guard Marin Blom at the 6:39 mark and another lay-up by Elrod at the 6:17 mark put Northwestern back in front by an 8-7 count. The Auggies would then counter as a lay-up by Hazuga at the 5:28 count had Augsburg back in front 9-8 and then freshman reserve guard Tyliah Frazier would then snare a steal and race the other way for a lay-up with 4:02 left that upped the Auggie lead to 11-8. But Northwestern was not going anywhere anytime soon as sophomore reserve guard Brenna Vogel uncorked a three-point bomb with 2:10 left that leveled this game at eleven a piece. And although Augsburg was able to nudge ahead 13-11 when sophomore reserve guard Lani Fonoti knocked down a pair of free throws after getting fouled with 2:02 left, the rest of this first period saw neither team able to do anything offensively so for the moment, this one looked to be a very tight affair.
But the Auggies sought to dispel this notion once the second period got underway with a quick burst of offense that had their opponent reeling a bit. Slender junior guard Saylor Gallagher finally found her touch beyond the arc as she would unleash a three-point bomb from the left corner area at the 9:39 mark and a lay-up by sophomore forward Jada Stanford at the 8:10 mark pushed Augsburg's lead to 18-11. Less than a minute later at the 7:37 mark, the Auggies got their lead to ten as Gallagher banged home a "3" from the left wing area to make it 21-11 and Northwestern Head Coach Aaron Kahl wasted little time in taking a match to a timeout in hopes of patching up the bleeding. Still, the Auggies would cap this 10-0 run when reserve junior forward Maecee Alexander to make it a 23-13 game at the 7:11 mark before Northwestern could apply a tourniquet to the massive bleeding as reserve redshirt freshman forward Karley Loven connected on a lay-up at the 7:00 mark. But Augsburg was not done with their initial offensive either as Hazuga would drain her second trey on this night with a bomb from the left wing area at the 6:46 mark. The Eagles would attempt to counter as freshman forward Emma Korinek would drain a "3" of her own from the left wing area at the 6:29 mark but then Augsburg unleashed a 6-0 spurt. Senior reserve guard Wakinyela Bear would connect on a lay-up at the 5:41 mark and then Bear would follow that up a bit later with a pair of freebies after she was fouled with 4:49 left to make it 30-16. Less than a minute later with 4:32 left, Alexander would connect on a lay-up in transition after a steal that stretched the Auggie lead to 32-16 and at this point it certainly seemed as if Augsburg was in position to blow this game wide open. Curiously, however, the Auggies were unable to sustain this run and that effectively opened the door for Northwestern to get back into this contest. Blom would muscle into the paint for one score with 3:25 left and then a short jumper off the glass by Ella Frazier with 2:43 left got the deficit down to twelve at 32-20. Augsburg hoped to light the spark again when Fonoti banged home a "3" from the right corner area with 2:22 left but the Eagles were not done yet. Ella Frazier would counter with a three-point bomb of her own from the left corner with 2:01 left and then a three-point bomb by Korinek from the top of the key with 1:11 left now had Northwestern back to within single-digit range down 35-26. A bit later, Korinek would knock down a pair of free throws after getting fouled with :46 left and Ella Frazier would follow suit after she was fouled with :14.6 that now had the Eagles right back in the thick of things down just 35-29 and Augsburg Head Coach Mallie Doucet and her staff had to feel a bit uneasy knowing that they were on the brink of putting this one away early only to see their opponent crawl their way back into this one.
Northwestern would get the gap closed to four early on in the third period when junior combo guard/forward Katelyn Lindberg connected on a short turnaround jumper in the lane at the 9:05 mark but the Auggies appeared to have things going again as senior guard Melanie Delestrez slithered into the paint for a score at the 8:50 mark and a pretty drive and finish by Hazuga at the 7:34 mark seemed to have Augsburg in good shape again with a 39-31 advantage. But a rejuvenated Eagles team would start making things uncomfortable for their host with not only their trademark 2-3 matchup zone defense but also by throwing in some pressure defense and trapping that not only stymied the usually potent Auggie attack but got them right back into the thick of things as well. Blom would muscle into the paint for one score at the 7:20 mark but then Vogel wowed the crowd inside Si Melby Hall with a nifty move to the hoop for a lay-up with 3:05 left that drew a foul as well. Vogel would also cash in on the obligatory "and one" that suddenly had Northwestern back to within a single possession down just 39-36. With 2:44 left, freshman reserve forward Olivia Heikes got her team on even terms as she would bury a "3" from the left wing area. The Auggies would poke their nose out in front again at 41-39 when Tyliah Frazier snared a steal in the backcourt and got a lay-up out of it with 2:22 left but Augsburg's Doucette was definitely not enjoying how this game had seemingly turned on a dime and called a thirty-second timeout in hopes of getting her troops reorganized. This short stoppage in play paid dividends for the Auggies as Bear would unleash a three-point bomb from the left wing area gave the home team a bit more breathing room with a 44-39 lead and a short jumper from the right side by Stanford with :53 left upped the lead to seven at 46-39. Still, Northwestern was able to stay within striking distance on a pair of free throws by Blom with :36.3 left and Kahl and his staff had to be encouraged about how his team had been able to find ways to weather the storm as this contest headed to the fourth period.
The early moments of the fourth period mirrored those of the third period as Augsburg was able to build on its advantage. Fonoti would start things off by draining a cold-blooded "3" from the left wing area at the 9:30 mark and a short jumper in the lane by the always-reliable Gallagher at the 7:48 mark gave the Auggies a ten-point cushion at 51-41 and now Northwestern would once again be forced to navigate choppy waters. Korinek would knock down a pair of free throws after getting fouled at the 7:03 mark but this time around the Eagles could never find that one spark that would get them on even terms again. At the 6:28 mark, Augsburg set its opponent further back when Fonoti darted into the lane for a finish that made it a ten-point game again at 53-43. Northwestern would make one bid to draw closer as Lindberg connected on a lay-up at the 6:07 mark and then Ella Frazier would snare a steal near midcourt and race the other way for a lay-up that also drew a foul and her ensuing "and one" gave the Eagles a chance down by just five at 53-48. A score in the paint by Loven with 4:44 left kept Northwestern in that five-point range down 55-50 and when Loven buried a "3" from the left wing area with 4:04 left, the Eagles still had hope down by just four at 57-53. But this bid by Northwestern would run out of steam after that as the Auggies were able to slowly close the door on this game. Stanford would knock down a critical jumper along the right baseline with 3:51 left and with 2:19 left, Stanford would come through again for Augsburg as she made a drive into traffic for a pretty finish off the glass that gave the Auggies a seven-point lead at 61-54. With time now a factor, Northwestern had to foul and Augsburg's Perkins would get one free throw to go down after getting sent to the line with 2:04 left and with :46.1 left, Gallagher would get fouled and her two free throws not only put the Auggies up 64-55 but now Augsburg was in the bonus as well. Pairs of free throws by Perkins with :35.4 left and by Gallagher with :34.1 left upped the lead to 68-56. Perkins would again come through for the Auggies with a pair of freebies with :14.7 left and although Northwestern would get late scores from Ella Frazier, it wouldn't be nearly enough as Augsburg notched their second victory of this young season with a 70-60 decision.
When I caught up with Northwestern's Kahl afterwards, I had to compliment his squad and how they were able to claw their way back into this contest after getting down by sixteen in the second period only to ultimately fall short. Kahl admitted that this seems to be a recurring theme for his young squad thus far this season; getting down and then expending a lot of energy getting themselves back into a contest and then falling short down the stretch. Still, Kahl is being patient with this team - and rightfully so I think - as again, this is a very young team that's largely made up with freshmen and sophomores and only one player - Lindberg - with practical college basketball experience. But with one player slated to come back from an injury before the Thanksgiving holiday, Kahl is hopeful they can get things turned around and I tend to believe that they will and they should at least be a factor in the UMAC race. Augsburg's Doucette meanwhile was obviously relieved with the win on this night but she was quick to admit that her squad still has a lot more work in front of it. I asked her specifically what her team needs to do to get on a bit more of an even keel and she said that it's going to have to happen in practice as she noted that while her team does have its moments when things are clicking offensively, there's been moments as well when lapses on the defensive end result in poor decision-making on a subsequent possession and that was evident on this night. I think that this team, if they can somehow find that happy medium where they're being efficient enough on the offensive end and can minimize the errors (more on that below), they've got a very good chance of being in the mix for that sixth playoff spot. Certainly they do have the weapons to do so.
When you look at the final box score for this one, you'll see that it's a mixed bag for both squads. Augsburg shot reasonably well from FG range; going 24-48 for a straight 50% and they were fantastic from the charity stripe going 15-16 for 93.8% (ring ring, HELLO!) and you can bet Doucette and her staff were very happy about that number. At the same time, while the Auggies can be very effective with their pressure defense which helped create 20 turnovers by Northwestern on this night, it's also evident that Augsburg can be turnover-prone as well when they're forced to ingest a dose of their own medicine as the 25 Auggie turnovers would suggest. Still, the Auggies did have an 18-8 advantage in fast-break points and had a sizable 30-18 advantage in bench points which helped turn the tide for them in this one. Moreover, Augsburg enjoyed a whopping 36-23 advantage on the boards.
And it was that bench scoring that played a big part in the balanced Auggie scoring attack on this night. Gallagher's led the way for Augsburg on this night but she had a lot of help as both Stanford and Fonoti tallied 10 points and Bear wasn't far behind as she finished with nine points and both Perkins and Alexander had seven points. Northwestern meanwhile leaned heavily on Ella Frazier and she didn't disappoint as her 16 points led all scorers and both Korinek and Loven finished with nine points a piece.
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