Bri Monahan finished with a game-high 15 points.
Jess Vadnais scored nine points and added game-highs with three assists and five steals.
Katie Layman finished with 10 points off the bench on 4-of-5 shooting.
The Gustavus Adolphus women’s basketball team jumped out to a 31-11 halftime lead and survived a second half rally that cut the lead to as little as nine points to post a 63-42 victory over Hamline Saturday afternoon in St. Peter. Gustie senior Bri Monahan (Hutchinson, Minn.) led all scorers with 15 points.
The Gusties built their 20-point halftime lead by taking advantage of poor shooting and turnovers by the Pipers. Hamline committed 22 first-half turnovers and hit only 19% (4-21) of their shots in the first half. Gustavus also held a 13-2 advantage in points off turnovers and a 7-2 lead in second-chance points through the first 20 minutes of play. Monahan had eight first-half points on 4-of-11 shooting to lead all players.
The Pipers rallied to begin the second half, outscoring the Gusties 14-3 to cut the lead to nine points at 34-25 with 13:18 to play. Gustavus started the half shooting 1-for-10 from the field, including 0-for-6 from three-point range.
After an Ashley Vorwerk free throw with 9:53 remaining cut the lead to 11 points at 42-31, the Gusties went on a 20-4 run to build their margin to 27 at 62-35 with 3:15 remaining. The Gustavus defense held the Pipers scoreless for a period of nearly five minutes during the stretch. Hamline scored seven of the game’s final eight points, mostly on free throws.
Gustavus out shot Hamline 34.4% to 27.3% from the field but committed only 10 turnovers during the game. Hamline rebounded from their early struggles with turnovers, making only nine in the second half to finish with 31 for the game.
Monahan finished with 15 points on 5-of-13 shooting. She also made five of six free throw attempts, pulled down four rebounds and made four steals. Katie Layman (Fy., Hudson, Wis.) added 10 points off the bench on 4-of-5 shooting from the field. Jess Vadnais (Jr., Hudson, Wis.) narrowly missed becoming the third Gustie in double figures, finishing with nine points, five rebounds, and team-highs in assists (3) and steals (5).
Jessica Heinen led the Pipers with eight points and 11 rebounds. Shelby Hyllengren and Ashley Vorwerk each added seven points, with Hyllengren posting a game-high 12 rebounds.
Vadnais moved into tenth place on Gustavus’ career steals list with 200, passing Sara Boldt (198 steals; 2002-06), while Monahan moved up to third on the career free throws list with 250, passing Shanna Behrens (249 free throws; 1992-95). Monahan needs 11 made free throws to become Gustavus’ all-time leader in the category, displacing the record of 260 currently held by Jen Klohs (2000-04).
Gustavus (10-2, 7-2 MIAC) will face St. Olaf Monday night in Northfield, while Hamline (7-6, 5-4 MIAC) travels to league-leading Saint Benedict.