TURNOVERS AND SECOND CHANCE POINTS LEAD SCSU PAST UMC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Offensive rebounds and turnovers were the undoings of Minnesota Crookston Women’s basketball in a 69-48 loss to St. Cloud State in an NSIC game played at Halenbeck Hall in St. Cloud.

First Quarter –
St. Cloud State guard Madelin Dammann (Sr., Waconia) opened the scoring with a banked-in shot from the free-throw line giving the Huskies a 2-0 lead before Nikki Kilboten (Jr., Eau Claire, WI) buried a three-pointer extending the SCSU lead to 5-0. Minnesota Crookston’s Abby Guidinger (Jr., Waukesha, WI) scored the Golden Eagles’ first points with a jump shot trimming UMC’s deficit down to 5-2. St. Cloud State answered with a 5-0 run including a pass that deflected off the arm of Katrina Theis (Soph., Maple Grove) and redirected off towards the ceiling, off the backboard, and through the net before UMC took a timeout with 7:24 to play in the opening quarter trailing 10-2. A pair of offensive rebounds led to another St. Cloud State basket extending the hosts lead to 12-2. The Huskies continued their run with a three-pointer from Kelsey Peschel (Soph., Sauk Center), increasing the Huskies lead to 15-2 before a long two-point shot dropped from Madelin Dammann increasing SCSU’s lead to 17-2. Dammann added another three-pointer increasing the lead to 20-2 before Mary Burke (R-Fr., Virginia) scored UMC’s second field goal with 4:36 to play in the first quarter bringing the Golden Eagles’ to within 20-4. Kylie Post (Soph., Corcoran) scored with a lay-up off the backboard on Minnesota Crookston’s next possession, followed by a three-pointer from Mary Burke trimming UMC’s deficit down to 20-9. St. Cloud State closed the quarter with a pair of lay-ups by Nikki Kilboten taking a 24-11 lead into the second quarter. “They had nine offensive rebounds in the first quarter,” noted Minnesota Crookston head coach Mike Roysland. “It was bad boxing out and not going to get the ball. They were working harder than our kids were, and that just can’t happen. (Offensive rebounding) was a point of emphasis all week, but obviously we weren’t able to execute that. We gave up way too many second-chance opportunities. That was the difference in the game.”

Second Quarter –
Kylie Post opened the second-quarter scoring with a tough finish at the rim that was answered by a St. Cloud State lay-up to spark a 6-0 Huskies run giving SCSU a 30-13 lead with 7:29 to play in the half. Minnesota Crookston countered with a 7-2 run capped by a three-pointer from Alyssa Peterson (Fr., Menahga) bringing the Golden Eagles within 32-20 with 4:14 to play in the half. St. Cloud State closed the half scoring the final two baskets as the hosts took a 40-25 lead into halftime.

Third Quarter – Minnesota Crookston opened the second half with an 8-2 run to pull within 41-33 just 1:07 into the third quarter before a St. Cloud State lay-up and timeout with 8:11 to play in the quarter and a 43-33 lead. After an Alyssa Peterson three-pointer trimmed UMC’s deficit down to 7, SCSU answered with a 4-0 run taking a 49-39 lead with 3:46 to play in the quarter. St. Cloud State closed the quarter on a 9-2 run taking a 58-41 lead into the fourth quarter. “I thought we had great looks at shots tonight, and that was a real positive,” added Roysland. “We had all kinds of really good looks, and it was great to see Alyssa (Peterson) come out and play the way that she did. She’s getting better as we move forward.”

Fourth Quarter –
St. Cloud State continued to keep its distance in a low scoring final quarter with both teams going scoreless from the 8:31 mark when the Huskies had a 60-46 lead before Kelsey Peschel (Soph., Sauk Center) made a three-pointer with 5:17 to play extending St. Cloud State’s lead to 63-46. The Huskies continued to maintain separation down the stretch as SCSU closed out a 69-48 win. “It was the first five minutes of the game that was the difference,” summarized Roysland. “I took two timeouts, and we still couldn’t stop the offensive boards. We just couldn’t box out as well as we’re capable of or how we know that we have to in these situations. There’s some things that were better tonight, but I’m still really disappointed in our defensive rebounding tonight. We’re better than that.”

Minnesota Crookston falls to 2-9 overall and 1-6 in NSIC play. The Golden Eagles return to the court on Saturday when UMC takes on Minnesota Duluth at 3:30 P.M. on KROX. St. Cloud State improves to 7-4 overall and 4-3 in conference play.