ST. PAUL, Minn-- The Wildcats fell to 4-5 in the MIAC on Saturday when they lost to the Hamline Pipers. At times, it looked as though the Wildcats' tough defense and timely shooting might allow them to pull off an upset of the Pipers, who have the second highest points-per-game in the conference (averaging 71). But the Pipers got hot late in the fourth quarter and put the game away.
The first quarter went well for the Wildcats. Their defense held the Pipers to 20% from the floor (less than half their season average), and with layups and free-throws from forwards
Bree Glynn and
Sam Orth, St. Kate's finished the quarter up by three points.
Hamline fared better in the second quarter, however. The period started with each team hitting shots from beyond the arc, but an 8-point run by the Pipers put them up by five. St. Kate's responded and climbed back to a 1-point lead on a pair of free throws by
Brooke Torvik with just over 6 minutes to play in the half. When Hamline went back up by three,
Greta Schimnowski answered with her second three-pointer to tie the game at 26 each. But then the Pipers outscored the Wildcats 11 to 4 to take a seven-point lead into the halftime break.
The Wildcats fought back in the third quarter with strong defense, solid rebounding, and effective offense. When
Rachel Randleman hit a three-pointer with under two minutes remaining, St. Kate's took a one-point lead. Unfortunately, Hamline answered and went up 47-44 going into the last quarter.
St. Kate's kept it close for most of the fourth quarter. They were down by only two points with seven minutes remaining. After the Pipers went up by six, the Wildcats again cut the deficit to 2 points when
Sam Orth hit a layup with just over three minutes left in the game. Hamline then started to pull away; the definitive moment seemed to be when they hit a three-pointer to go up by eleven with just over a minute left. Overall, while the Wildcats seem to win the battles close to the basket (42-32 rebounds; 30-20 points in the paint), outside shooting carried the Pipers to the win (they hit 46% from beyond the arc).
The Wildcats' next game is Wednesday, January 18
th at 7 pm at home at the
Butler Center.
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