MANKATO, Minn. — The No. 22-ranked Concordia-St. Paul women's basketball team prevailed in a tightly contested defensive battle to grab their first NCAA Regional win in 11 years, taking down Northwestern Oklahoma 52-45 to advance to the regional semifinals. A total of seven Golden Bears found the scoresheet with three notching double digits in a game where every bucket was necessary.
"That was a grind," Head Coach Amanda Johnson said. "We worked a lot on defensive sets going into this game and we knew it was going to be a grind, but defense wins games, holding them to 45 when they average 69 was huge for us."
It is the Golden Bears first win in the NCAA Central Region Tournament since March 17,2014 when they took down Emporia State, 70-67 in the Central Region Final. For Amanda Johnson it's the first regional win in her tenure as head coach. The Golden Bears are now 11-11 all-time at the NCAA Tournament.
CSP has now extended its winning streak to 17 games, the second longest in program history and the largest since they won 18 in a row during the 2007-08 season.
Leah Dengerud led the way scoring 12 points in the win, while grabbing four rebounds, dishing out two assists and coming away with a block. The senior guard knocked down back-to-back jumpers late in the fourth to extend CSP's lead and ultimately secure the win.
Ashley Schuelke notched 10 points in the win, with eight of those coming in the second half on 5-of-10 shooting, adding in three rebounds and two assists in the winning effort. Schuelke was key on the defensive end as well, coming away with three steals and one block.
"As a team, we always play super hard," Ashley Schuelke said. "We run the ball, push the ball and play hard defense, we're used to it and we like playing together."
Junior forward Lauren Wilson played a pivotal role on defense as well, coming up with a season-high five blocks, two steals and 15 rebounds, with 11 of those coming on defense. On offense Wilson dropped nine points on 4-of-8 shooting while making one three-point bucket.
Avery Moeller provided 10 points off the bench, knocking down two three balls and going a perfect 4-of-4 at the free throw line. Lydia Haack scored two points in the win, with five rebounds and four assists.
With the game tied at seven in the first Leah Dengerud knocked down a three ball to open up a 10-7 lead, with the Golden Bears holding a one point lead at the end of the period.
The lead changed hands five times in the second quarter with back-to-back Avery Moeller three-pointers opening up a six point lead for the Golden Bears. Moeller went up for another three-point attempt late in the period, drawing the foul and hitting all three attempts at the charity stripe to head into the half with a 29-24 lead.
Ashley Schulke worked her way into the paint for a layup to open up a nine point lead for CSP early in the third. Schuelke closed out the quarter with two straight layups to give the Golden Bears an eight point lead heading into the fourth.
The Golden Bears largest lead came on a Emma Mommsen bucket to open the fourth, making it a 10 point CSP advantage. The Lady Rangers clawed back within three with three minutes to play, a clutch 15 foot jumper by Leah Dengerud got the CSP lead back to five. Concordia closed things out from there grabbing a 52-45 and advancing to the Regional Semifinals.
"I just tried to play as hard as I can for my team," Leah Dengerud said. "Knowing we needed an extra bucket to give us that little lead."
The NCAA Central Region Semifinals will see the Golden Bears match up with third-seeded Fort Hays State Tigers. CSP faced FHSU earlier in the season opener, with the Tigers coming away with a 84-78 win in St. Joseph, Missouri. Tomorrow's semifinal matchup is set for 5 p.m. at the Taylor Center in Mankato.
"Advancing to tomorrow is something I was hoping would happen," Johnson said. "I trusted them and down the stretch we showed up. I love being around this group and we're excited to keep the winning streak going."
