Notables
-Walther scores a career-high 29 points, 15 in the fourth quarter
-Finlandia's 10th straight loss
-Second road game win for CSS
-CSS shot 80 percent from the free throw line
HANCOCK, Mich. (csssaints.com) - The St. Scholastica women's basketball team defeated Finlandia University (Mich.) 86-79 on Saturday, thanks to a hot shooting streak in the fourth quarter by Michala Walther (Roseville, Minn./Concordia Academy), earning CSS its second victory away from Duluth of the season.
The Action
The Saints hit the first basket of the game, but were pushed out of the lead almost immediately by Finlandia, who then led through the rest of the first quarter until a layup by Sam Brannen (Ramsey, Minn./Anoka HS) tied the score at 20-20 with two seconds left in the quarter.
The second quarter proved to be a valuable one for the Saints, as they outscored the Lions 17-6 to put themselves in the lead, which the Lions would not manage to retake for the rest of the game. Walther started things off for CSS with a good 3-pointer two minutes into the period to make the score 23-20. Finlandia managed to get in a few buckets over the course of the quarter, but it was no match for the surging Saints offense. The last five minutes saw an 11-2 run in favor of the Saints, extending their lead to 11 to end the half with a score of 37-26.
Finlandia made a push in the third quarter and managed to outscore St. Scholastica 25-17 in an effort to make up some ground it had lost at the end of the first half. The Lions managed to pull the lead to within three points, aided by a run of six unanswered points in the middle of the quarter, which ended with a score of 54-51.
A free throw by the Lions to open the final quarter of play shrunk the point deficit to two, but it was the closest Finlandia would get to the lead. From there, the Saints hit five unanswered points to pull away from the grasp of their opponent, despite Finlandia's best efforts. The Saints outscored the Lions 32-28 - 15 of them coming from Walther - in the quarter to stay ahead, giving the game its final score of 86-79.
Notable Performances
Walther led the offense for the Saints, nailing a career high of 29 points going 11-for-16 on field goals, 3-for-3 from the free throw line and 4-for-6 on 3-pointers. She also collected eight rebounds. Danielle Cieluch (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) had nine rebounds on the night with 15 points. Brannen was behind her with 14 points, and Mel Weisbrick (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing HS (Hibbing CC)) followed her with 13.
For the Lions, Mikayla Hakala had 24 points. Just behind her was Julia Daavettila with 20 points of her own. Kelsie Richards pulled in 10 rebounds and tallied 13 points.
Up Next
The Saints hit the court in Duluth next weekend for their last home games of the regular season. On Friday they face Bethany Lutheran with tip off set for 5:30 p.m. in the Reif Gymnasium. The Seniors will be recognized on Saturday when the women face Martin Luther at 3 p.m in the Reif. Follow the action live on Saints Sports Net.
