After the Concordia - Macalester game, I hustled over Summit and Fairview Avenues to get over to St. Kate's to take in the 3:00 P.M. contest between visiting St. Ben's and host St. Kate's. While the Wildcats have been struggling mightily this season, the Blazers, on the other hand, are one of the hottest teams around and have been riding a seven-game win streak and were looking to make it eight in a row - and to keep pace along with SMU being right on the heels of conference leader Concordia.
But things would not start out so easily for Head Coach Mike Durbin's squad as the 'Cats were scratching and clawing and hanging right in there. With the Blazers up 4-0 on a jumper by senior forward Hannah Hylla and a lay-up by freshman Mattie Lueck, the 'Cats struck back on a "3" by freshman forward Cynthia Cowan at the 15:48 mark. The Blazers would get their mojo right back and build the lead to 8-3 by the 14:14 mark when Mattie Lueck grabbed a long rebound and then went right into the paint for a drive and finish. Right back, though, came the 'Cats and it would be junior guard Kristen Lee doing damage from behind the arc at the 12:36 and and 9:36 marks that allowed St. Kate's to get back to within one each time. After senior forward Morgan Dale's score inside with 9:21 left got the Blazers a 13-10 lead, St. Kate's junior forward Madison Pertler was able to manuever inside on the ensuing possession for a score that got the 'Cats to within one again.
Finally, the Blazers were able to open up a little distance on their hosts and they did it by making a concerted effort to get into transition on each possession as they really pushed the ball up the floor. Junior guard Brianna Barrett's lay-up at the 8:42 mark was followed by a "3" by sophomore point guard Jessica Fischer from the top of the key with 7:52 left. Dale used her strong 5'10" frame to score inside with 5:39 left and then it was senior leader Whitney Canton with a drive and finish in transition that got her fouled as well that, along with the obligatory free throw made it a 23-16 game. Wildcat sophomore forward Mary Neumann countered with a "3" from the top of the key that pulled St. Kate's to within four but then it was Canton playing like a thief in the night as she stole the ball away from Wildcat freshman Amanda Padilla and went the other way for a lay-up with 2:33 left and then it was Barrett with a lay-up in transition with 2:07 mark that made it a 27-19 game and had St. Kate's Head Coach Sean Pinkerton calling for a :30 timeout. But that didn't seem to slow the Blazers down at all as Canton connected with a jumper in the lane with 1:27 left and, after two freebies by Barrett with :32.8 left, the senior from Pine Island wearing #10 used her athleticism to connect on a sweet pull-up jumper with just two ticks left on the clock as CSB took a 33-21 lead into the locker room at halftime.
The 'Cats tried to make inroads on the CSB advantage once the second half got underway but they would only have limited success. After Mattie Lueck's lay-up at the 19:47 mark, lanky 6'0" sophomore Sarah Mong knocked down two charity stripe shots after being fouled at the 17:55 mark and then it was Lee again draining another one of her patented "3's"; this one from the top of the key at the 16:55 mark that made it a 36-26 game. Dale did get in the paint again for the Blazers for a score at the 14:21 mark but then Cowan was able to do the same for the 'Cats at the 14:02 mark and then strong sophomore Sarina Baker knocked down a rare "3" from the left top area at the 13:18 mark that got the 'Cats to within single digits at 39-31. With CSB up 43-31 after Barrett knocked down two freebies at the 11:46 mark, Lee again uncorked a bomb from the left top; this one kissed off the glass and went into the cylinder (I think I heard her call it :) as the 'Cats once again pulled to within single digits at 43-34 by the 11:32 mark.
Predictably, however, CSB never panicked and hit the gas pedal again to wear down their opponents. Two inside scores by reserve sophomore forward Elena Koch at the 10:57 and 10:25 marks had the Blazers rolling again. Then, with 9:17 left it was Barrett leading a 3 on one assault transition for a lay-up and a 49-36 CSB advantage. Barrett did an encore performance with 9:17 left and then it was Canton burying a "3" from the right wing with 5:03 left that had the Blazers up 55-38 with 5:03 left. Mattie Lueck connected with a jumper at the 2:41 mark and was fouled in the process and, although she missed the obligatory free throw, the Blazers were now up 59-40 and Durbin inserted the subs for the closing stretch. This gave 6'6" freshman reserve center Sydney Hughes out of Olympia, Washington a chance to shine as she scored inside with 2:07 left and then Hughes was able to connect with a turnaround shot off the glass with just :46 left. Finally, sophomore reserve Emily Lueck (Mattie's sister) was able to knock down a jumper along the right baseline as time expired for a final count of 66-45 as the Blazers routinely took care of business on this day. Afterward, Durbin confided to me that his team's confidence level has skyrocketed since December and, despite early season losses to UW-River Falls, GAC, SMU, and Concordia up in Moorhead, this Blazer team is looking awfully tough right now; a world apart from the injury-riddled squad a year ago. But now the rough stretch looms in the distance: A home date with Augsburg on Monday night is followed by a Wednesday night home game with conference leader Concordia and then another trip down to the Cities next Saturday for a date at UST. Then, on February 13 the Blazers must make the trek down the River and the Canadian Pacific Railway's River Sub mainline to Winona to take on SMU which, like CSB, is white-hot right now before closing out the regular season at home against St. Olaf. We'll find out more, a LOT more about both the Blazers - and the conference - in the next several days for sure.
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