St. Cloud State
2-2,1-1NSIC
University of Mary
1-1,1-1NSIC
Huskies fall on last second shot 70-67
1/9/2021 7:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
ST. CLOUD, MINN. - The St. Cloud State University women's basketball team is already no stranger to close games in 2020-21. The Huskies went to overtime in their first game of the season, and it looked like overtime was going to be needed to determine a victor in Saturday's contest with the University of Mary. Luck, as it would have it, was the determining factor in Saturday's Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) match up, as the Marauders defeated St. Cloud State 70-67 on a last second shot.
The Huskies shooting woes continued in the opening quarter of play, as they fell behind 18-6 in the opening 10 minutes of play. A different team showed up in the second quarter, as St. Cloud State slowly but surely whittled away at the Mary lead. It started with free throws by Caitlyn Peterson (Lakeville, Minn. / Lakeville North) and Brehna Evans (De Pere, Wis. / West De Pere) and continued with layups by Nikki Kilboten (Eau Claire, Wis. / Eau Claire North) and Tori Wortz (Hutchinson, Minn. / Hutchinson), allowing the Huskies to cut the Marauders lead to 24-15 with 6:23 remaining in the half.
Mary scored two points on free throws following another Kilboten layup, but St. Cloud State's spark was lit, as the team scored 10 of the next 12 points to take a 26-24 lead with 3:01 remaining in the second quarter. The two teams then traded the lead, until an Erin Navratil (Albany, Minn. / Albany) hook shot allowed the Huskies to enter the locker room with a 32-30 halftime advantage.
St. Cloud State continued to trade the lead with the Marauders throughout the third quarter, but Mary eked its way to a 50-47 lead by the end of the quarter. From that point on, it was a physical battle to the finish, as the Huskies scored seven unanswered points to open the fourth, eventually taking a 54-50 lead on a beautiful three-point basket by Wortz.
With six minutes left in regulation, Navratil scored an aggressive layup under the basket, seemingly putting St. Cloud State ahead for good at 58-52. The Huskies just couldn't put away the pesky Marauders though, as they continued to stay within striking distance of St. Cloud State's lead. Still, the Huskies had an answer for every Mary strike, until the two minute mark, when the Marauders evened things up at 65-65.
The final minute was the most intense of an intensified NSIC contest, as Lauren Rotunda gave Mary a 67-65 lead on a backdoor layup with 45 seconds left in regulation. Wortz then drew a foul on the other end of the court, sinking both free throws to tie the game with 26 seconds remaining on the clock.
There was only one thing left for St. Cloud State to do: get a stop. The Huskies seemed up to the task, as the force of Wortz, Evans, Peterson, Navratil and Kilboten kept the Marauders out of the lane for roughly 25 seconds. Then, Megan Voit struck. Mary's most dangerous three-point shooter heaved a three from the left side, and all St. Cloud State could do was watch as it swished through with 1.8 seconds remaining on the clock.
Still, 1.8 seconds is plenty of time in the sport of basketball, as veteran head coach Lori Fish called back-to-back timeouts to set up the Huskies final offensive drive. With Peterson inbounding, four three-point shooters were on the court, all with a chance to be the hero and tie the game for St. Cloud State.
Evans received the in bound pass and deked her defender before putting up a shot from the right corner. The clock ran out, as the ball soared for the hoop, seemingly on target. It hit the far rim, bounced up, and fell on the wrong side of the hoop, allowing Mary to steal a 70-67 win in Halenbeck Hall.
Wortz was the top point scorer for the Huskies Saturday afternoon, as she tallied 16 points, 11 of which she scored in the second half of the ball game. Three other student-athletes scored in double digits for St. Cloud State, including Navratil (14), Evans (13) and Kilboten (10). Navratil was the team's top rebounder with nine total.
With the loss, the Huskies overall record falls to 2-2, and they are now 1-1 in NSIC play. St. Cloud State will return to action on Friday, January 15, when the team faces Minot State in its first road contests of 2020-21.
