WAYNE, Neb. – Wayne State College out-scored the University of Minnesota Crookston 28-15 in the final 15 minutes of the game as they fell 72-59 in the first round of the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament at Rice Auditorium. The Golden Eagles were tied up 44-44 with 3:29 remaining in the third quarter, but Minnesota Crookston was unable to convert a field goal for 10:20 and they were unable to recover from their drought down the stretch.
The season comes to an end for the Golden Eagles as they end the season with an 8-19 mark. Wayne State improved their mark to 25-6 as the Wildcats move on to face Concordia University-St. Paul Sun., Feb. 25 at 2:30 p.m. at the Sanford Pentagon. Minnesota Crookston was unable to make it back to the Sanford Pentagon for a fourth-consecutive year as they will look to regroup heading into the 2018-19 season.
Minnesota Crookston looked to 19 points from Isieoma Odor (R-Jr., F/C, Bloomington, Minn.), who was 8-of-22 from the field. Odor became the 12th player in school history to reach 1,000 points in the second half. She joined her teammate Micaela Noga (Sr., G, Parkers Prairie, Minn.), who finished her career with 1,106 points as she ends her time in Minnesota Crookston seventh all-time in scoring. Caitlin Michaelis (Jr., G, Marshfield, Wis.) added 11 points, five boards and four assists, including going 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. Abby Guidinger (Fr., G/F, Waukesha, Wis.) added 10 points off the bench. Emily Gruber (Sr., F/C, Monticello, Minn.) ended her career with 958 points, just shy of the 1,000 point club. She had five points on the night before fouling out with 9:33 left in the fourth quarter.
Minnesota Crookston was 21-of-66 from the field for 31.8 percent. The Golden Eagles shot 7-of-16 for 43.8 percent from beyond the arc, but were just 2-of-6 in the second half. Minnesota Crookston struggled at the stripe as they were just 10-of-17 for 58.8 percent from the line.
Wayne State had four players score in double figures. Maggie Schulte led the team with 15 points and nine boards. Kacie O'Connor added 15 points and four assists, while Erin Norling added 13 points. Paige Ballinger finished with 13 points and nine rebounds.
The Wildcats were 25-of-54 from the field for 46.3 percent. Wayne State shot 6-of-13 from beyond the arc for 46.2 percent. The Wildcats made it count from the foul line where they were 16-of-17 for 94.1 percent.
Wayne State controlled the boards 43-32. The Wildcats had 16 turnovers on the game but were unable to overcome that with their play on the boards and in the post. Minnesota Crookston had 14 assists to just seven turnovers on the game.
The Wildcats opened the game with a 4-0 run after back-to-back Ballinger jumpers. Noga stopped the run with a last-second three-pointer as the shot clock expired bringing Minnesota Crookston within 4-3. Wayne State moved the lead to 8-5 as Norling made a transition lay-up. The Golden Eagles knotted the slate up 8-8 as Gruber hit a three-pointer from the win with 5:27 left in the first quarter. However, the Wildcats came back on the next two possessions with back-to-back triples from Maggie Lowe and O'Connor to move their lead to 14-8. The Golden Eagles cut the lead to 14-11 with a Michaelis triple. Wayne State used a 4-0 run to extend their advantage out to 18-11 with 1:12 remaining remaining in the opening quarter. Minnesota Crookston ended the quarter with a jumper from Odor and a Michaelis triple to cut the lead to 18-16 going into the quarter break.
Wayne State moved the lead to 19-16 as Ballinger hit 1-of-2 from the stipe at the start of the second quarter. The Golden Eagles would knot the game up 19-19 as Lindsey Weber (Jr., G/F, Delafield, Wis.) drained a trey from the wing. The Wildcats countered with a 4-0 run guided by consecutive baskets from Schulte as they extended the lead to 23-19. Gruber stopped the short run with a bucket to cut the lead to 23-21. Wayne State responded with another 4-0 run to move their advantage to 27-21 with 5:11 left in the frame. The Wildcats would hold on to a six-point lead (29-23) with 4:36 left in the quarter. Minnesota Crookston came back with a 6-0 run propelled by four points from Guidinger as they evened the tally 29-29. Wayne State halted the run as O'Connor drained a trey to make it 32-29. Michaelis had a shot to even the slate going into the break but it went errant as the Wildcats held on to the advantage.
Minnesota Crookston was paced by Michaelis with eight points on 3-of-6 from the field. Michaelis added three assists in the first half. Guidinger came off the bench for six points, while Gruber added five for the Golden Eagles.
Minnesota Crookston shot 12-of-32 for 37.5 percent from the field. The Golden Eagles were an impressive 5-of-10 from beyond the arc for 50.0 percent.
Wayne State looked to nine points and four boards from Ballinger on 4-of-7 from the field, Schulte added eight points and four rebounds, while O'Connor chipped in six points.
The Wildcats were 13-of-28 for 46.4 percent from the field. Wayne State was 2-of-7 for 42.9 percent from beyond the arc. The Wildcats shot 3-of-4 for 75.0 percent from the foul line.
Minnesota Crookston opened the third quarter on a 9-5 run ignited by six points from Odor. The Golden Eagles would take their first lead 36-34 with 8:09 left in the frame. The two teams would trade the lead for the next five possessions until the Wildcats were able to move the lead to 44-40 with a Norling old-fashioned three-point play with 5:45 left in the third quarter. Minnesota Crookston responded as Michaelis drained her third triple of the day to cut the deficit to 44-43. The Golden Eagles tied the game up 44-44 as Odor put in 1-of-2 from the stripe. Wayne State quickly reclaimed the lead and moved it to 51-45 after a 7-1 run was stamped by an O'Connor trey. The Wildcats took a 55-47 lead into the fourth quarter after Brittany Bongartz hit a pair from the foul line.
Wayne State went on an 11-2 run to open the fourth quarter as they moved their lead to 66-49 with four minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Golden Eagles didn't scored a field goal for 10:20 as they struggled to find the hoop. Minnesota Crookston got the lead down to 66-54 as Odor scored her 1,000th point of her career. The Wildcats held on for the 72-54 win after their play during the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth quarter.
Minnesota Crookston returns 10 players to their roster and are set to add in a highly-touted recruiting class of six signees to the program. The Golden Eagles must replace Noga and Gruber, who were great leaders and who both ended their career on several all-time charts. The pair ended their careers as the first players to ever appear in three-straight NSIC/Sanford Health quarterfinals, they were hoping to make it four, but came up just short.
