MARSHALL, Minn. — Offense was hard to come by but the Concordia-St. Paul women's basketball (19-6, 15-5 NSIC) team earned its 11th win in a row, taking down the Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs (14-11, 12-8 NSIC) 57-51 in a low scoring battle of defenses Saturday afternoon in Marshall.
The win secures a first-round bye in the NSIC Tournament for the Golden Bears, as they are now tied for second-place in the conference with Minnesota Duluth. CSP also holds a two-game lead over fourth-place UMary and a three-game lead over both SMSU and Winona State with two games to play.
Lydia Haack was the lone Golden Bear to tally double digit points, scoring 11 in the win and falling one board shy of the double-double with nine rebounds. Haack dished out six assists, while playing stingy defense coming away with four steals.
Lauren Wilson and Avery Moeller each scored nine points, Wilson also came away with three rebounds and came up big at the free throw line hitting on 4-of-5 attempts. Moeller led the CSP bench in scoring, hitting on 2-of-5 shots from beyond the arc, while making 3-of-4 attempts at the charity stripe.
Junior center Emma Mommsen scored seven points and recorded seven rebounds, playing a pivotal role in locking down the paint with three blocks on defense for CSP. Leah Dengerud dropped eight points with seven rebounds, the senior guard was strong on defense as well coming away with four steals.
Neither team turned in a strong shooting performance with the Mustangs hitting at a 34.5% (19-55) clip, while CSP was 29.5% (18-61) shooting. The Golden Bears did hold the Mustangs second-ranked three-point shooting attack in check, as SMSU shot just 12% (3-25) from beyond the arc. CSP hit at a 34.8% (8-23) clip from three, while going 13-of-18 at the charity stripe.
Emma Mommsen opened the game with a layup, with the game remaining 2-0 for the first five minutes of play. The next field goal for either side was a Ava Thompson three-pointer at the 3:26 mark of the first, as CSP held a 10-4 lead at the end of one.
Lauren Wilson opened up the second quarter with a fastbreak three, as the Golden Bears built a 14 point lead thanks to a 6-0 run to start the period. Scoring continued to be a struggle for both sides, with CSP holding a 23-17 lead at the break.
SMSU chipped away at the CSP lead early in the third taking a 27-26 lead four minutes into the period. The Golden Bears responded with back-to-back three balls from Avery Moeller and Leah Dengerud to regain a five point advantage. Two more lead changes ensued, as Ayana Bousum closed the quarter with a three-pointer of her own to give CSP a 40-37 lead.
Clutch shooting continued to be a theme for CSP, as the Golden Bears faced a three-point deficit midway through the fourth, before Moeller and Lydia Haack drained a pair of threes to reclaim the lead once more. Haack knocked down another pivotal jumper in the paint with 1:39 to play and Leah Dengerud sank a three ball to seal the deal as Concordia came away with the six point win.
Defense was key for CSP all game long, forcing 24 Mustang turnovers and turning them into 26 points. Bench scoring favored CSP as well to the tune of a 19-4 margin. CSP now moves to 11-1 on the road this season, with their lone road loss coming to Minnesota State back in November.
The regular season home stretch continues for the Golden Bears as they head to St. Cloud Wednesday night, Feb. 18, to take on the Huskies in their final road game of the season. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.
