SAINT PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus women’s basketball team won its fifth consecutive game Saturday afternoon, beating Macalester 71-63 to improve to 5-1 overall and 4-0 in the MIAC.
After three lead changes and five tie scores in the opening six minutes, Morgan Kelly (Fy., Saint Peter) hit a jumper to give the Gusties a 12-10 lead which they held the rest of the game. Gustavus led 16-14 at the end of the first quarter and rattled off eight unanswered points in the second for a 26-16 advantage with 4:49 on the clock. The Gusties outscored the Scots 23-10 in the second and led 39-24 at halftime.
Macalester won the third quarter, cutting the deficit to single digits at 51-43 heading to the fourth, but the Gusties closed out the game by not allowing the Scots to come within seven points the rest of the way.
Macalester out-shot the Gusties 47.2-39.7 percent from the floor, but the Scots committed 20 turnovers compared the Gustavus’s 12. The Gusties scored 25 points off the takeaway. The Gusties also played well in transition, outscoring the Scots 20-2 on fast break points.
Emma Kniefel (So., Medford) shot 9-of-16 for 22 points. Maddy Rice (Jr., Forest Lake) added 12 points off the bench. Rachel Kawiecki (Fy., Richfield) hauled in a team-high eight rebounds, five of which on the offensive end. As a team, the Gusties tallied 13 steals.
Gustavus next travels to Augsburg on Wednesday night.