Was over at the Gangelhoff Center on this rainy, wet Friday evening to take in this important NSIC clash between visiting Moorhead State and host Concordia St. Paul. The Golden Bears, coming off of huge road wins at #19 Wayne State and at #5 Augustana now looked to protect home court as they stood at 5-2 in a packed South Division while the Dragons were also looking to keep up with the pack in the Northern Division; still very much in the thick of things. Given the records and the rosters of both teams along with the coaching this appeared to be a great match-up and I would not be disappointed.
Things would be tight between these two teams in the opening minutes but beginning at the 16:55 mark the Dragons would begin a push to get their nose out in front as senior guard Kaycee Charette was able to knock down a "3" from the left top area for a 7-4 Moorhead State lead. That lead would increase to 11-6 when junior power forward Megan Strese was able to hit a jumper at the 15:37 mark and then get a drive inside with a finish by the 14:23 mark as the host Golden Bears were struggling mightily from the perimeter. Concordia St. Paul, however, does have players who can do a lot of damage in the paint and they would use that to inch their way back into things. Sophomore forward Anika Whiting, enroute to a fabulous night, was able to get inside for a score at the 12:56 mark and then it was senior reserve guard Mandy Poke who knocked down two freebies at the 11:26 mark and then grabbed an offensive rebound and got a putback with 10:33 left that pulled the Golden Bears to within one at 13-12. Then it was junior guard Carissa Wolyniec who got the Golden Bears back out in fron at 15-13t with her "3" from the left wing at the 9:57 mark and another inside score by Whiting with 8:58 left upped that lead to 17-13.
Now it was the Dragons turn to respond and get things tight again. After senior guard Marisa Yernatich's two freebies with 7:47 left, it was Strese hitting a jumper from the left wing that knotted things up at 17. Moorhead State would then reclaim the lead at 19-17 when freshman forward/post Savanna Handevidt knocked down two free throws with 6:42 left. The Golden Bears would tie things up at 19 when quick freshman reserve guard Jasmine Haynes made a drive and finish inside on the ensuing possession but Moorhead State would hold a slight advantage coming down the home stretch of the first half. Handevidt got the Dragons a 23-19 lead with her short jumper at the 5:17 mark but that advantage quickly evaporated when Whiting drained a "3" from the top with 4:23 left. After a Strese score inside with 3:57 left, it was the Golden Bears Wolyniec who tied the issue again at 25 when she hit a "3" with 3:40 left. Moorhead State would gain that advantage once again when junior reserve forward Megan Zabel hit a jumper with 2:11 left and then Strese's jumper along the baseline with :52 left. Zabel would give Moorhead State its 31-27 halftime lead when she made two freebies with just :12.5 left after being fouled.
Concordia St. Paul tried to answer quickly as the second half began to assert itself but, at least in the first few minutes anyway, it seemed like whenever the Golden Bears were primed to take control Moorhead State always had an answer. After a score inside by Whiting on the Golden Bears initial possession at the 19:49 mark and Wolyniec doing the same on the next possession at the 19:27 mark that tied things up once again at 31 a piece, Yernatich put the Dragons back up at 34-31 with her "3" at the 19:17 mark and a freebie with Strese at the 17:44 mark upped that lead to 35-31. Right back came Concordia St. Paul as Whiting was able to score inside and got fouled in the process by Charette and the obligatory freebie got the home team back to within one at 35-34. Then it was Whiting putting the Golden Bears back on top briefly at 36-35 with yet another score inside at the 16:58 mark. Oh, but right back came the Dragons as Yernatich drained a "3" at the 16:48 mark and then it was Strese doing more damage inside as she scored off of an inbounds pass at the 15:29 mark for a 40-36 Moorhead State lead. Clearly, the Golden Bears were going to have to exert that extra ounce of energy if they wanted to keep their winning streak alive. They just had to dig down deep.
With 15:08 left on the clock, Concordia St. Paul finally began to do that proverbial digging; exerting that extra ounce of energy and passion that allowed them to seize control of this game. And, what made this fun to watch was that the Golden Bears were not relying on just one player to do it all; they were getting contribution from a variety of players. Poke started the decisive 14-4 run when she made a quick drive and finish inside and got fouled in the process that allowed her to knock down the freebie. Then it was sophomore reserve guard Kayla Hulsebus knocking down a "3" from the left corner at the 14:35 mark that gave the Golden Bears the lead at 42-40. The Dragons would tie things up twice at 42-all and 44-all but Concordia St. Paul got the lead for good at the 12:37 mark when Whiting, who was beginning to dominate down low, scored off the glass and got fouled in the process . Then Whiting AGAIN at the 12:25 mark with an offensive rebound and putback and being sent to the charity stripe once again; this time knocking it down. Two more freebies by Whiting at the 11:22 mark and a score inside by reserve sophomore forward Amanda Barton had Moorhead State Head Coach Karla Nelson calling a much-needed (and probably belated) timeout to calm her squad down as they now trailed 53-44.
Moorhead State tried desperately to regain momentum coming out of the timeout as Zabel was able to connect with a drive and finish inside that got her fouled and sent to the charity stripe where she knocked down the freebie at the 10:25 mark. Handevidt knocked down a short jumper at the 9:41 mark that momentarily halted the Golden Bear Express but Concordia St. Paul had no intentions of letting this one get away. Wolyniec drained a "3" from the left top with 8:56 left and then it was Poke with one of her patented quick drives and a finish inside with 7:09 left that helped maintain the lead at five at 58-53. Still, the Dragons would get agonizingly close the rest of the way. After a strong drive along the baseline and finish by Whiting at the 6:25 mark that kept the margin at five at 60-55, Strese made two free throws after being fouled with 6:12 left. Some of the air went out of Concordia St. Paul's balloon as well when Hulsebus went down hard around the 5:41 mark and inadvertently banged her head against the floor that stopped action. After things resumed, Zabel also did work from the charity stripe getting two freebies with 5:29 left that got the Dragons to within one and they were able to stay in that one possession game mode until Haynes was able to connect with a running hook in the lane with 3:09 left that upped the Golden Bear lead to 67-62.
But the Dragons would make still one more last gasp attempt. Charette connected with a jumper just inside the arc from the right corner at the 2:11 mark that cut the Golden Bear lead down to 67-65. After junior Rachel Hansen's drive and finish with 1:57 left that upped the Concordia St. Paul lead back up to 69-65 Strese was able to get inside once more with 1:42 left that cut the Golden Bear lead back down to a one possession game. The critical moment came around the 1:11 mark when Wolyniec swished a "3" from the left wing for a 72-67 Concordia St. Paul lead. Wolyniec caught the pass from Hansen who, it appeared anyway, to have traveled just before she threw the ball that had the Moorhead State fans and parents screaming for a traveling call; not to mention the Dragon bench up in arms that really sealed their fate. That lead was upped to seven with just 16.6 left before Yernatich knocked down one more "3" for the Dragons that proved to be too little, too late with just :09.7 left. Even more of a downer (other than the loss itself) was Yernatich's injury as the final buzzer went off for a 76-70 Concordia St. Paul victory. Just before the buzzer went off, Yernatich was fighting for an offensive rebound and, in the process anyway, got accidentally konked on the forehead by an inadvertent Concordia St. Paul elbow that caused a large gash on her forehead and sent her to the hospital emergency room for stitches.
So definitely a good win for the Golden Bears as they remain right in the mix in the South Division and they keep that win streak going. Head Coach Paul Fessler commented afterward that he felt his team played much, much better offensively in the second half and it showed with the game-changing run they had. Northern State visits the Gangelhoff and they are also in the mix in the North Division so, presumably anyway, the Golden Bears will have their hands full again tomorrow as well.
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