Was over at Butler Center on this unseasonably warm February Saturday afternoon to take in the game between visiting Augsburg and host St. Kate's. The Auggies were coming into this contest trying desperately to keep their flickering playoff hopes alive while the Wildcats were hoping to get back on the winning track after dropping consecutive heartbreakers on the road to the top two teams in the conference - UST last week Saturday and SMU on Wednesday night.
The 'Cats came out of the gate in this one with a purpose as they built a 7-2 lead by the 6:19 mark thank to a drive into the lane and finish by sophomore guard Audra Clark and a "3" from the right top area by senior guard/forward Shauna Horsch along with a lay-up by junior forward Mari Lee. St. Kate's built their lead to seven at 11-4 with 3:52 left thank to two Lee free throws and a lay-up in transition by the former Dawson-Boyd standout. The Auggies fortunes indeed appeared dim when senior guard Marie Fitzgerald went down with 2:17 left with an apparent shoulder injury but a resourceful Augsburg team managed to battle their way back. Senior forward Jessica Lillquist got into the paint for one score with 1:24 left and a drive and finish by fellow senior point guard Maria Loughlin with just :00.4 left in the opening period cut the Wildcats lead down to 13-10 which, considering how much things went for St. Kate's early on, wasn't a bad spot to be in.
A jumper along the left baseline by junior reserve guard/forward Alexis Garcia stretched the Wildcat lead to 15-10 by the 9:39 mark of the second period but the Auggies would keep digging away at the deficit. One lay-up by sophomore reserve forward Bridget Bednar at the 9:25 mark and a drive into the lane and finish by Loughlin at the 8:39 mark cut St. Kate's lead down to one at 15-14 and a jumper along the left baseline by senior reserve guard Jenna Orth at the 7:53 mark gave Augsburg its first lead of the afternoon at 16-15. Wildcat Head Coach Sean Pinkerton shed his sportcoat shortly thereafter and a short running jumper along the left baseline by Orth at the 6:40 mark helped the Auggies turn up the heat even more with a 19-15 lead. St. Kate's would recover and knot the score at 19 a piece on scores by junior forward Kennedy Jennings and sophomore guard Meg Clark with 4:47 left and each side would trade small leads down the stretch. A score in the paint by Lillquist with 3:37 left put Augsburg back up briefly by a 21-19 count but that was bettered by a score in the paint by Jennings which also drew a foul and allowed her to sink the obligatory freebie putting the 'Cats back up 22-21. An offensive rebound and putback by freshman reserve forward Megan Quam gave the Auggies the lead back at 23-22 with 3:04 left but a drive and finish by flashy junior reserve guard/forward LaShay Holt gave St. Kate's a 24-23 advantage which they took with them into the locker room at the half. A quick glance at the first half box score indicates how even the first half was. Rebounding was nearly even (24 for St. Kate's, 22 for Augsburg) as were turnovers (Augsburg with eight; St. Kate's with seven). Looking ahead to the second half, there were a lot of unanswered questions on both sides.
The Auggies looked to get an inside track in the early moments of the third period as an offensive rebound and putback by Lillquist at the 9:35 mark and a Loughlin lay-up at the 9:09 mark had Augsburg out in front 27-24 but St. Kate's would come right back and regain the lead at 28-27 by the 8:02 mark on a short jumper by Audra Clark and two Lee free throws. Two more Lee charity stripe shots and a score in thge paint by Audra Clark gave the 'Cats a 32-29 lead but the Auggies would come right back as a "3" from the right top area by senior guard Allison McKee knotted the issue at 32 a piece. St. Kate's would grab another three-point edge at 37-34 with 4:28 left thanks to a score in the paint by Jennings and a "3" from the right corner by Holt. But this was where Augsburg was able to make its first decisive move. A short jumper off of an inbounds pass by Orth with 3:28 left cut the Wildcat lead down to one at 37-36 and then freshman reserve guard Alaina Quaranta gave the Auggies the lead with one freebie with 3:05 left and a jumper from the left top area with 2:25 left at 39-37. A Holt score in the paint with 2:08 left tied the score at 39-all but Augsburg then started its key 11-0 run that started late in the period and spilled over to the fourth period. A score in the paint off of an inbounds pass by Lillquist with 1:46 left gave the Auggies the lead for good at 41-39 and an offensive rebound and putbackby the Sebeka native increased the lead to 43-39 with :57 left. Sophomore forward Hannah Steinhaus ended the third period with a steal and lay-up the other way with just :03 left that suddenly had Augsburg up 45-39 and Pinkerton and his Wildcats had to be wondering what just hit them.
Two scores by Loughlin early in the fourth period - a "3" from the right wing at the 9:28 mark and a jumper along the left baseline with 8:38 left - capped the 11-0 burst and now the Auggies were up by a count of 50-39 and St. Kate's had to play yet another desperate game of catch-up. Holt was able to maneuver into the paint for a score with 8:29 left and got fouled in the process and her free throw got the 'Cats back to within single-digit range trailing 50-42 and a score in the paint by Lee at the 7:30 mark cut into the Augsburg lead even further at 50-44. One free throw by McKee at the 6:40 mark and a drive and lay-up by Loughlin at the 6:05 mark got the lead back up to nine points at 53-44 but St. Kate's was far from finished. A lay-up in transition by Audra Clark at the 5:14 mark and a "3" from the right corner by Horsch trimmed the Auggie lead down to six at 55-49 and a short jumper by Audra Clark with 4:09 left reduced Augsburg lead even further at 55-51. The Auggies stretched the lead out to seven at 58-51 with 3:11 left on free throws by both Steinhaus and Quaranta but a drive and short jumper by Horsch with 2:53 left and a "3" by Audra Clark from the right wing area with 1:51 left got the 'Cats back in striking distance again traling 60-56. Pinkerton called a timeout to set up strategy and St. Kate's was able to get a stop on the Auggies ensuing possession. With a chance to get the game back into a one-possession situation, St. Kate's worked the ball downcourt in hopes of getting one of their three-point sharpshooters open. With 1:07 left, Horsch got that open look behind the arc and let loose with a trey attempt but this one rattled out and refused to fall through the cylinder. Steinhaus was able to get a score in the paint with :41.8 left that upped the lead to six at 62-56. The never-say-die 'Cats refused to throw in the towel however. Lee uncorked a "3" from the left corner with :03.4 left that did get things back to a one possession game at 62-59 but St. Kate's had to foul immediately as well. Loughlin got the inbounds pass and was immediately fouled with :01.6 left and she calmly trotted down to the other end to sink two insurance free throws for a 64-59 Augsburg lead. Horsch would get two free throws as well with just :01 left but the Auggies took a treasured road win by a count of 64-61 to keep their playoff hopes alive.
A relieved Augsburg Assistant Coach Josh Hersch talked about how any win in the always-tough MIAC is a good win but this one was obviously important for the Auggies who improved their conference record to .500 at 7-7 and stay in the hunt for that coveted sixth playoff spot. It's a one-game-at-a-time mentality for Hersch who says that their next game with UST is now their most important game. It's going to be a tough home stretch for Augsburg to be sure and even though they'll need some help along the way, it's a doable proposition. Meanwhile, a third consecutive heartbreak for the Wildcats who have been so close in their last three outings but can't quite yet find a way to finish the job. A disappointed Pinkerton seemed emotionally worn out afterward and could only ponder what might have been had a few things gone differently for them. Surprisingly, it was the Wildcats that held a small 43-39 rebounding advantage and, in fact, had a 17-12 edge in offensive rebounds. The three-point shooting aspect hurt St. Kate's in this one as did that key 11-0 run by the Auggies. Shooting 21.7% behind the arc won't get the job done.
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