Made the trip over to Schoenecker Arena on this Thursday night for the much-anticipated MIAC Playoff semifinal showdown between visiting St. Mary's and host UST. The Tommies knocked the Cardinals out in the semifinals last year and the teams split their series during the regular season - each winning at home. This latest go-around would be the latest test for this up-and-coming St. Mary's squad which has put together a very good regular season
The Tommies would hold a slight edge in the first half; in fact, they had three opportunities to give themselves some cushion but each time they threatened to open up some distance; the resilient Cardinals would always find a way to claw back which has been typical of their season where they seem to always start out slowly in the first half. With the Tommies up 10-6 after a lay-up by sophomore sensation Jen Dockter at the 14:47 mark, St. Mary's sophomore reserve guard Octavia Brown snared an offensive rebound on the Cardinals ensuing possession and got a putback to cut the deficit to a scant two points. But the Tommies would counter with another Dockter drive and finish at the 12:04 mark and then sophomore forward/post Anna Smith, who has had to fill some big shoes this season with Maggie Weier's injury, nailed a "3" at the 11:36 mark that had UST up 15-10. The Cardinals would narrow the deficit again on an offensive rebound and putback by junior post Courtney Euerle and a jumper by senior forward/post Jamie Stefely but the Tommies would respond with another push. Up 17-14, the Tommies would go on a 10-4 run; highlighted by a drive and finish by Smith with 9:14 left; a pretty turnaround jumper in the lane by junior sensation Taylor Young with 8:34 left; a lay-up by Dockter with 7:03 left and then a score in the paint by reserve sophomore forward Alyssa Favilla that had UST up 27-18 with 5:48 left and had St. Mary's Head Coach Mandy Pearson calling for a timeout to get her squad reorganized.
Whatever Pearson told her squad during that timeout seemed to work as the Cardinals calmly responded. Junior reserve guard Darcey Rice knocked down a trey from the left wing with 5:31 left and Stefely muscled her way into the paint for a score with 4:38 left that cut the deficit to four at 27-23. The Tommies could have put the Cardinals in a hole again after junior Kelly Brandenburg got inside for a score with 4:11 left and Dockter connected with another lay-up with just 1:48 left but St. Mary's refused to be fazed. Senior Jessica Thone, who was hounded all night by the stifling Tommie defense, got inside and connnected on an unbelievable reverse one-handed shot underneath the basket with 1:23 left and then freshman Shelby Auseth showed her shooting prowess from behind the arc with just :52 left as she banged home a "3" from the right top area that cut the Tommie lead to 31-28 going into the locker room at the halftime break. Being that St. Mary's has been a huge second half team all year long, this is likely just where they wanted to be in a hostile environment.
But if the Cardinals were going to shine in the second half, they were going to have to do it the hard way as UST came out firing after the halftime break. Smith made good on a hook shot in the paint and got fouled in the process. She missed the obligatory freebie but that was more than made up for by senior guard Kellie Ring as she drained a "3" at the 19:39 mark to make it 36-28 Tommies. The Tommies would keep that 7-8 point cushion over the next eight minutes before the Cardinals were able to make serious inroads on the Tommie advantage again. After another drive and finish by Dockter at the 10:44 mark (on her way to a game-high 19 points on this night) that had UST up 47-40, St. Mary's was finally able to put together a mini-push. A score in the paint by Euerle at the 10:23 mark and then a "3" by Stefely; the senior from Lisle, Illinois made it a 47-45 game. Would this be where the Cardinals finally make their big move to surge ahead?
If the Cardinals were thinking in those terms, the Tommies certainly had other ideas. Worse yet for St. Mary's, the fouls began piling up alarmingly as UST found themselves in the bonus at the 11:50 mark. With 8:58 left, Dockter made another one of her classic hard drives inside for a finish and drew a foul from Thone which suddenly saddled her with four fouls and left Pearson with no choice but to sit her until the home stretch. Still, this resilient bunch from Winona refused to fold up the tent when things were looking bleak. A "3" by Ring had the Tommies up 51-45 with 8:27 left but a tip-in by Stefely on a missed shot with 8:13 left and then a "3" from freshman Bridget Pethke from the left corner with 6:57 left brought the Cardinals to within two again at 52-50. A score in the paint by Stefely with 4:34 left kept the margin at two and then Thone took a sweet pass in the lane from Pethke to finish inside that cut the Tommie lead to 57-56. Unfortunately for St. Mary's, they simply could not get over the hump as the Tommies kept their cool and responded with a key 12-0 run fueled by Dockter and Smith. Moreover, UST would be in the double-bonus at the free throw line with 1:43 left after Smith was fouled and the Tommies would be able to salt this one away at the charity stripe. Thone would try and make a gallant comeback for her team when she was able to connect on a drive and finish with :49 left and then two free throws with :42.7 left but then she fouled out a few seconds later as did Rice and UST claimed a tough 69-60 win that sends them to Moorhead on Saturday to take on Concordia which defeated CSB on this night in the MIAC Championship Game. With the wins, both UST and Concordia are practically locks for the Big Dance regardless of the outcome on Saturday but now St. Mary's has to endure the painful realization that they might be on the outside looking in; even with their 22-5 record (more on that later). They now have to sit back, pace the floor back and forth endlessly and wait and see what happens on Monday with the announcement of the pairings for the NCAA Tournament.
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