The Gustavus women’s basketball team fell to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the MIAC with a 54-52 loss to Concordia Saturday afternoon in St. Peter. The Gusties, who trailed 33-27 at halftime, fought back to tie the score at 52-52 with 44 seconds remaining only to see Cobber junior Sarah Krabbenhoft hit a jumper with 28 seconds left on the clock and take the victory.
Gustavus jumped out to a quick lead in the first half, scoring the game’s first seven points. Concordia rallied, though, to overtake the Gusties and build an eight-point lead with less than two minutes left. A layup by senior guard Sara Boldt (Faribault, Minn.) cut the lead to six at 33-27 as the teams headed to the locker room for halftime.
For much of the second half, Concordia maintained its lead, extending it to 11 points (47-36) on a Sarah Krabbenhoft jumper with 9:52 remaining in the game. The Gusties battled back over the next eight minutes, outscoring the Cobbers, 14-3, to tie the score at 50-50 with 1:59 left on the clock. The teams traded the lead over the next 1:30 before Krabbenhoft gave Concordia a 54-52 lead with 28 seconds to go. The Gusties were unable to convert on a pair of three-point attempts in the final ten seconds of play.
Concordia shot 52.4 percent for the game (22-42), bettering the Gustavus total of 34.5 percent (19-55). Neither team shot particularly well from the charity stripe. The Gusties edged the Cobbers from the line, hitting on 46.7 percent (7-15) of their attempts compared to Concordia’s 42.9 percent (3-7).
Junior Bri Monahan (Hutchinson, Minn.) led all players with 22 points and nine rebounds, while guard Jess Vadnais (Hudson, Wis.) added another 12 points and six boards for the Gusties. The Cobbers were led by Melanie Hageman’s 14 points and five rebounds. Krabbenhoft hit 6-of-7 shots from the field for Concordia, adding 13 points off the bench.
The Cobbers improve to 2-4 overall and even their mark in the MIAC at 1-1. Gustavus (3-2, 1-1 MIAC) will continue its season-long five-game homestand next week, hosting St. Kate’s on Monday, St. Thomas on Wednesday and Hamline on Saturday.