WINONA, Minn. – The Gustavus women’s basketball team Wednesday started off slow and made a late-game comeback effort, but came up just short at Saint Mary’s in a 67-64 loss. The Gusties drop to 13-4 overall and 11-3 in the MIAC, while the Cardinals improve to 6-13 overall and 5-11 in the league.
“In the end, you have to play the full 40 minutes and they were the better team tonight,” Head Coach Laurie Kelly said. “We’ve been on the road a lot and things were stacked up against us but they came out of the gates a lot stronger than us. They made some tough shots, but this is an opportunity for us to learn and grow. We have to be ready to play and we never really came out with the energy and focus we need to start the game.”
After trading buckets in the opening three minutes of the game, Saint Mary’s closed out the first quarter on a 15-7 run for a 21-13 lead. Gustavus brought the lead down to one point thrice in the second quarter, but a three-pointer by the Cardinals was the last made shot of the half and the home team held a 35-31 advantage at the break.
Emma Kniefel (So., Medford) made a layup to tie the game at 37 with 6:59 left in the third, but the Cardinals closed out the frame on a 16-7 run for a 53-44 lead. Saint Mary’s increased its lead to 13 points early in the fourth quarter before the Gusties responded with 13 consecutive points to erase the deficit. The Cardinals were able to regain the lead a minute later and maintained a slim lead for the rest of the game.
The Gusties shot 31.3 percent while the Cardinals converted at 44.2 percent. Rebounding was in favor of the Gusties 47-33. Anna Sanders (Jr., Vadnais Heights) paced the offense with 19 points. Kniefel added 12 points and was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line, while Rachel Kawiecki (Fy., Richfield) had a team-high 12 rebounds.
Gustavus next hosts St. Catherine at 1 p.m. Saturday.