Women's Basketball
Women's Basketball
NCAA DII Central Region Tournament: Fort Lewis 74, St. Cloud State 69
Huskies Fall 74-69 to Fort Lewis College in First Round of NCAA Tournament
Friday, March 13, 2009
Talisha Barlow scored a career high 28 points |
With the loss, the Huskies end their season with a 22-9 overall record and last week captured their first conference title since 1989 winning the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament championship. Fort Lewis College, the regular season champion of the Rocky Mountain Conference (RMAC) improved to 27-3 and will play the winner of the #3 seed Winona State/#6 seed Colorado State Pueblo game on Saturday at 6:00 p.m.
“I am really proud of this basketball team. We are one of 64 that are still playing today. We won a championship, It has been a great run and a very season,” said St. Cloud State head coach Lori Fish.
Barlow scored 18 first half points and finished the day with a career high 28 points on 12 of 20 shooting from the field. She also pulled in a team high six rebounds for the Huskies. Barlow scored the first six points of the game as SCSU jumped out to 6-0 lead, and the first eight points for the Huskies. Senior guard Anna Cashman (Faribault) equaled her career high with five three point baskets to finish the game with 15 points, making fove of eight attempts from beyond the arc. Senior guard Katie Tacheny (Woodbury) rounded out the Huskies in double figure scoring with 12 points, including five of five completions at the free throw line and a game high six assists.
“Winning is such an exciting thing and then to get here is even more exciting. To have only 64 teams playing and to be one of them is quite and experience,” said Tacheny after playing her final collegiate game.
“We knew they would come out and pressure us hard and extend us out post the three point line,” said Cashman.
“We’re proud of what we did. We’re proud that we got here.”
St. Cloud State shot 45.6 percent from the field and 43.8 percent from three point range. Fort Lewis College shot 45.1 percent from the field and 88.0 percent from the free throw line, connecting on 22 of 25 attempts. The Skyhawks held a 33-27 rebounding edge in the game.
Fort Lewis College was led by junior post Alison Rosel with 20 points and nine rebounds. Junior guard Katie Mackey had 18 points and seven rebounds. Mackey made eight of nine free throw attempts. Sophomore guard Abby Jackson added 16 points and six assists, and made seven of eight free throw attempts. Junior forward Audrey George was the fourth Skyhawk in double figures with 13 points and a game high five blocked shots.
The Huskies led on the scoreboard throughout the first half with one exception. Fort Lewis took its only lead of the half, 12-10 on an Abby Jackson three point basket at teh 10:14 mark. Barlow played an outstanding first half, making jumpers in the lane and making a jumper followed by her only three of the game to give the Huskies a 22-15 lead at the 7:03 mark of the first half. Another jumper followed by a jumper and one from Barlow gave the Huskies their largest lead of the game at 10 points, 27-17 with 3:21 left in the first half.
Fort Lewis College, making its second NCAA tournament appearance in as many years did not let that 10 point lead phase them. The Skyhawks outscored the Huskies 10-2 in the final three and half minutes of the half and the Huskies lead was cut to 29-27 at the half. Fort Lewis College junior post Alison Rosel scored all eight of her first half points in the run that pulled the #2 seed to within two points.
The Huskies opened the second half with a layup from senior forward Danielle Ellison (St. Paul) to up their lead to 31-27. A three by Katie Mackey and two free throws from Rosel gave the Skyhawks their second lead of the game 32-31 just two minutes into the second half.
St. Cloud State tied the game and went ahead 33-32 on two Tacheny free throws, and then the teams went back and forth as Fort Lewis would tie the game and the next basket would give the Huskies a lead. That continued for the next six minutes and included eight ties, the final tie coming from an Anna Cashman three that knotted the game at 47-47 with 12:29 left in the second half.
Fort Lewis took the lead on two Abby Jackson free throws and started to pull away from the Huskies taking a seven point lead at the 6:43 on a pair of Lauren McCulloch free throws. Cashman answered with a two three’s that pulled the Huskies to within four, 58-54 at 6:31 and within five, 62-57 at the 5:07 mark. With 2:39 remaining, Fort Lewis led 69-69 after Katie Mackey made two free throws.
The final two and a half minutes provided a great deal of excitement. After trailing by ten, the Huskies made a run at the Skyhawks. Sophmore post Rachel Booth (Minneapolis) made two free throws, the Huskies forced a FLC turnover and Tacheny scored on a layup and added a free throw to cut the lead in half. A defensive rebound by the Huskies set up another Cashman three and the Skyhawks lead was 69-67 with 1:37 left.
Fort Lewis College went to the free throw line six times in the final 1:37 and made five to seal the game. A Tacheny driving layup with :07 seconds left cut the lead to three points. After two timeouts the Huskies were forced to foul and Abby Jackson made two free throws with :04 second left to give the Skyhawks their first NCAA tournament win in team history.
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