UMC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL EARNS FIRST WIN OF THE SEASON OVER CHAMINADE IN HAWAI’I

The University of Minnesota Crookston (UMC) Women’s Basketball team lost three games, traveled over 4,000 miles and took three flights before securing their first win of the season, despite a furious Chaminade comeback, as the Golden Eagles hung on for a 66-63 victory over Chaminade in the O’ahu Thanksgiving Classic played at The Shark Tank in Honolulu, Hawai’i.

FIRST QUARTER –
Mattea Vetsch (Fr., Devils Lake, ND) opened the scoring with a three-pointer 11-seconds into the game, giving Minnesota Crookston a 3-0 lead. Trailing 7-5, Julia Peplinski (Soph., Hustisford, WI) tied the game at 7-7 with a lay-up with 4:47 to play in the first quarter. A quick 4-0 Chaminade run gave the Silverswords an 11-7 lead. Trailing 15-11, Kylie Post (Soph., Corcoran) scored three-straight points before three-pointers by Paige Weakley (Sr., Kearney, MO) and Kylea Praska (Soph., Thief River Falls) gave Minnesota Crookston a 20-15 lead with 0:45 left in the opening quarter. Julia Peplinski closed the first quarter with a pair of free-throws giving the Golden Eagles a 22-17 lead after one quarter.

SECOND QUARTER –
Bren Fox (Soph., Norwood Young America) opened the second quarter with a score at the rim extending UMC’s lead to 24-17. A quick 4-0 boosted Minnesota Crookston’s advantage to 28-19. A Kylie Post lay-up with 5:35 left in the first half gave the Golden Eagles a 30-23 lead. UMC failed to score another field goal the rest of the first half managing just one free-throw in the final 5:35 of the first half as Chaminade trimmed its deficit down to 31-29 at halftime.

THIRD QUARTER –
Chaminade tied the game at 31-31 with a lay-up to open the second half before a Kylie Post jumper and Alyssa Peterson (Fr., Menahga) three-pointer gave Minnesota Crookston a 36-31 lead. The Silverswords pulled within 41-39 with 3:12 to play in the quarter but a 5-0 run reestablished a 46-39 lead for the Golden Eagles. Bren Fox made scored three straight points on a pair of trips to the free-throw line to end the quarter with Minnesota Crookston leading 49-41 with 10 minutes to play.

FOURTH QUARTER –
Minnesota Crookston opened the fourth quarter with a 4-0 run taking a 53-41 lead with 8:47 to play. Chaminade responded with the game’s next 9 points to pull within 53-50. Mary Burke (R-Fr., Virginia) answered the run with a clutch three-pointer giving the Golden Eagles a 56-50 lead with 6:32 remaining. A Silverswords three-pointer trimmed Chaminade’s deficit down to 58-57 with 5:06 to play. Mary Burke and Bren Fox scored consecutive baskets giving Minnesota Crookston a 62-57 lead with only 3:20 separating the Golden Eagles from their first victory of the season. After Chaminade went on a 4-1 run all from the free-throw line, the Silverswords missed a three-pointer to take the lead with just under two minutes remaining. Julia Peplinski knocked down one free-throw putting Minnesota Crookston in front 64-61 with 1:28 to play. After a missed Chaminade jump shot, Golden Eagles turned the ball over with 0:57 remaining and a 64-61 lead before the Silverswords used a timeout. A quick basket trimmed Chaminade’s deficit down to 64-63 before Bren Fox was fouled sending her to the free-throw line with 0:21 to play. Fox converted both free-throws giving Minnesota Crookston a 66-63 lead. The Silverswords missed their tying three-pointer attempt before Mattea Vetsch sunk a pair of free-throws giving Minnesota Crookston a 68-63 lead. Chaminade made two late free-throws but their comeback bid fell short as the Golden Eagles hung on for a 68-65 victory.

Minnesota Crookston improves to 1-3. The Golden Eagles will enjoy a two-week break before they open NSIC play at home against Bemidji State on Saturday, November 30 at 2:00 P.M. Chaminade falls to 0-3.