NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The St. Olaf College women's basketball team held a six-point lead after three quarters before Concordia-Moorhead rallied in the fourth for a 61-52 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) victory on Wednesday night at Skoglund Center.
St. Olaf (8-9, 5-9 MIAC) led 44-38 heading to the fourth quarter but managed just one field goal over the final 10 minutes, as Concordia (14-3, 11-3 MIAC) outscored the Oles by a 23-8 margin over the final 10 minutes to earn their sixth-straight win. Senior
Rachel Kelly scored a game-high 20 points and moved into the top 10 in program history in career points in the loss.
Kelly was 7-for-9 from the field and made all six of her free throws, while finishing one rebound shy of a double-double with 20 points and nine rebounds for St. Olaf. The 20-point night brought the senior's career total to 908 points, moving her up to ninth in program history. Kelly was the lone Ole in double figures in scoring, as sophomore
Sarah Tangen added nine points off the bench and classmate
Paige Yagodinski chipped in with eight points.
Emily Beseman was the top scorer for the Cobbers with 17 points on 6-for-10 shooting, while also contributing six rebounds, four steals, and two assists. Makayla Anderson was 5-for-9 from the field while recording 13 points and six rebounds, while Carlee Sieben had 11 points, six steals, five rebounds, and three assists.
Kelly got off to a quick start, scoring 12 of St. Olaf's 16 first-quarter points to lead the Oles to a 16-13 advantage after 10 minutes. Kelly connected on five of her six shots in the quarter and scored eight-straight St. Olaf points before senior
Sophie Olmen hit a three-pointer in the closing seconds to break a 13-13 tie.
In the second quarter, the Oles extended their lead to eight – their largest of the game – at 23-15 on a Tangen three-pointer with 5:29 left, but Sieben scored the next seven points to bring the Cobbers within one. St. Olaf answered with a three-pointer by senior
Cassie Fix and a three-point play by Tangen to quickly push its lead back to seven in the closing minutes of the half and took a 29-24 lead into the locker room.
After St. Olaf led by seven twice in the first two minutes of the third quarter, Concordia-Moorhead climbed back within one at 33-32 with a 6-0 run before senior
Grace Hegland ended the spurt with a three-pointer. The Oles led for the entire third quarter and carried a 44-38 lead into the fourth after a late bucket by Olmen.
A three-pointer by Yagodinski with 5:47 to go accounted for the lone made field goal of the fourth quarter for St. Olaf but had the Oles up 49-45 at the time. The visitors outscored St. Olaf by a 16-3 margin after the Yagodinski three to grab the nine-point win.
The Oles visit St. Joseph for a 3 p.m. tip-off against the College of Saint Benedict on Saturday, Jan. 28.
