ST. PAUL, MINN. – Drama: a state, situation or series of events involving interesting or intense conflict of forces.
Or, Wednesday evening's basketball game between St. Catherine University and Concordia College.
In what proved to be one of the most dramatic and thrilling games of the season, the Wildcats snapped their three-game Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) losing streak. Despite a last minute surge from the Cobbers, St. Kate's held on to defeat Concordia 61-58 thanks, in large part, to career games from
Morgan Kurth (Hutchinson, Minn. / Hutchinson),
Ashley Fosness (Britton, S.D. / Britton-Hecla) and
Bailee Sillman (Chippewa Falls, Wis. / Chippewa Falls).
It was clear early on that it was going to be a battle between the Cobbers and Wildcats. After the first quarter, Concordia held a slim 15-12 lead over St. Kate's thanks to outstanding three-point shooting early in the quarter. In fact, the Cobbers led by as many as seven points with two minutes remaining, but a four point run from the Wildcats cut the lead to 15-12.
The two teams continued to duke it out in the second quarter. Every time St. Kate's managed to get within one of Concordia's lead, the Cobbers managed to score a basket of their own, extending the lead back to two or even three points. However, the Wildcats scrappy defensive play eventually turned into points on the offensive end, as they finally took a 19-18 lead at 5:31 in the quarter.
There were two more lead changes in the second quarter before St. Kate's took a definitive and decisive 32-23 lead with two minutes remaining. Kurth,
Alexis Garcia (Minnetonka, Minn. / Hopkins) and
Jackie Radford (St. Paul, Minn. / Cretin-Derham Hall) all had a hand in the seven point run, as did the Wildcats stingy defensive. Steals by Radford and
Sam Skwarek (St. Anthony, Minn. / St. Anthony) kept Concordia from scoring for three consecutive minutes. However, the Cobbers eventually did manage to find an offensive rhythm, scoring the last five points of the quarter to cut St. Kate's lead to 32-28 at the half.
The game staid tight through the first five minutes out of the half, as the Wildcats and Cobbers traded the lead for the first half of the third quarter. St. Kate's hit a hot streak, though, late in the quarter, again spurred from gritty defense and a tough tenacity on offense. The Wildcats also got hot from three-point range, as late treys by Kurth and Fosness pushed St. Kate's lead to 53-43 at the end of the third quarter.
It looked as though the Wildcats were going to pull away with the game early in the fourth quarter. With the shot clock winding down, Fosness hit a huge three from the top of the key to extend St. Kate's lead to 56-43 40 seconds into the fourth quarter. Concordia did score back-to-back threes on its ensuing possessions, but the Wildcats had an answer for every basket the Cobbers scored. With Concordia closing in, Radford hit two free throws to extend the lead back to 10 points at 59-49.
The final minute proved to be the most exciting of the game. With exactly 1:23 remaining in the game, Fosness made one of two free throws to put St. Kate's up by 12 at 61-49. However, in the final minute, the Cobbers got hot from three-point range and quickly whittled the Wildcats lead to 61-58 with 21 seconds remaining in the game. Concordia's full court press gave St. Kate's trouble, as the Cobbers forced four Wildcats turnovers in the closing seconds of the game. St. Kate's, though, held on in the final seconds, as Grace Wolhowe's desperate heave fell short of the basket, resulting in the 61-58 Wildcat victory.
Kurth, Fosness and Sillman all had monster days in terms of scoring as each recorded new career highs in scoring. Kurth tallied 15 points in the victory, while Fosness and Sillman added 10. Radford scored 10 points and pulled in a team leading eight rebounds in the victory as well.
With the win, St. Kate's snaps its three-game losing streak and improves to 7-9 overall with a 3-6 mark in MIAC play. The Wildcats will return to the court on Saturday when they take on No. 25 Gustavus Adolphus College at 3 p.m. in St. Peter, Minnesota.
