Box Score Box Score
DULUTH, Minn. – The St. Scholastica women's basketball team ended 2008 on a sour note with a 44-40 defeat to St. Olaf College this afternoon at Reif Gym.
The Saints are now 2-9 overall, while the Oles improve to 2-5. This was the first loss against St. Olaf in the four total meetings between the two schools.
Both teams struggled shooting from the field in the first half with neither team shooting over 24-percent. The Oles went on a 6-0 run to take a 10-4 lead with 11 minutes to play. The margin remained around six the rest of the half as St. Olaf went into the locker room with a 22-15 lead.
The Oles went up by 12 in the second half before the Saints went on an 8-0 run to make the score 28-24 with less than 15 minutes remaining. The lead fluctuated between four and nine until #Erin Morstad# (Fr.-Fergus Falls, Minn.) connected on a 3-pointer to cut the margin down to three with two minutes to play. Both teams then exchanged free throws and the Saints had a chance to tie with less than 30 seconds left, but would turnover the ball. St. Olaf hit just one free throw to seal the victory by a score of 44-40.
St. Scholastica shot 27-percent for the game, but was 4-for-6 from beyond the arc in the second half. The Oles shot 23-percent for the game and were 2-for-23 on 3-point attempts. However, St. Olaf was 14-for-18 from the free throw line.
#Kirsten Haukom# (Jr.-Marshall, Minn.) and Erin Morstad (Fergus Falls, Minn./Fergus Falls HS) both had 12 points to lead the Saints. The 12 points by Morstad was a career-high. Elyse Erickson had a game-high 22 points to lead St. Olaf.
The Saints return to Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) action next week when they travel to South Dakota to face Presentation College on Friday, January 9th. The tip-off for that game is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
