Notables
-Eighth home win of the year for CSS, the most since 2011-12 season
-Least amount of points allowed by Saints all season
-14th double-digit-point game of the season for Walther
-Senior Miner earned season high 10 points
DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) - The St. Scholastica women's basketball team closed out its regular season home slate on Wednesday with a 65-31 defeat over Northland College and by recognizing the senior members of the Saints squad.
First Half
The first quarter was close, with neither team ever getting ahead by more than four points. The Saints opened the game on a 3-pointer from Michala Walther (Roseville, Minn./Concordia Academy) and just barely held the lead. After three and a half minutes of play, a layup came from the LumberJills (3-12, 1-14 UMAC) that put them up by one at 6-5. Holly VanKempen (Elbow Lake, Minn./West Central HS) answered immediately to take the lead back for the Saints, which they would hold for the rest of the game. The second quarter saw the Saints slowing pulling out of Northland's reach. The Saints outscored the 'Jills 15-6 in the second quarter and the game went into halftime with a score of 27-16.
Second Half
The third quarter opened with nine consecutive points from CSS, with Northland not scoring until more than five minutes had passed. By then, the Saints were up by 19 with a score of 36-17, and they would hold that steady lead for the rest of the quarter.
The fourth quarter was again dominated by the Saints. CSS went on a run of seven points to start. As time wound down, the Saints were ahead by 34 points, ending the game with a score of 65-31. In this last regular season home game, every player listed on the CSS roster managed to get court time thanks to the secure lead held by St. Scholastica at the end of the second half.
Notable Performances
Walther led the offense for CSS with 13 points. Just behind her was Emelia Miner (Hutchinson, Minn./Hutchinson HS), who earned herself 10 points, a season high. VanKempen and Chelsea Swatek (Cromwell, Minn./Cromwell HS) pulled in six rebounds each. Walther, Danielle Cieluch (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS), and Maddy Halley (Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake HS) had four apiece.
For the LumberJills, Autumn Ninke had seven points to lead the offense, and not far behind her was Sarah Houle with six. Katherine Taylor led the rebounding with five.
Up Next
The Saints (13-11, 8-7 UMAC) head to St. Bonifacius on Saturday to take on Crown College in its final game of the regular season. Action is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m.
