Molly Mathiowetz scored eight points in a late 14-3 surge by the Gustavus women’s basketball team, but still suffered a 64-60 loss to Concordia in Moorhead, Minn. on Wednesday night. The Cobbers hit a season-high eight three-pointers as they won their sixth straight contest to improve to 6-4 overall and 5-2 in the MIAC. Gustavus, which has lost four of the last five games, dropped to 5-5 overall and 4-3 in conference play.
Emily Nelson hit a three-pointer with 16:57 on the clock to give Gustavus a 7-6 lead, which turned out to be the last lead of the contest for the Gusties. Concordia put together a 8-2 run with a pair of three-point shots from Anna Matetich and Sara Sorbo and two Jenna Freudenberg free throws for a 24-16 lead with 6:59 remaining in the first half. The Gusties would counter with a 6-2 run of their own with a pair of Nelson free-throws, a layup by Molly Mathiowetz, and a three-point basket by Jess Vadnais to cut the deficit to 26-23. Neither team would score in the last 1:40 after Vadnais made four free throws to send Gustavus into halftime down 30-27.
The second half was comprised of two significant runs after the Gusties tied Concordia at 35-35 five minutes into the second half on a Mathiowetz layup. The Cobbers outscored Gustavus 23-9 in the next ten minutes to build its biggest lead of the game at 58-46 with 5:18 remaining in the game. Gustavus turned up its defensive intensity as Concordia then committed six turnovers during a 14-3 Gustie run to pull within one point at 61-60 with :58 left. Vadnais scored four consecutive points before Mathiowetz scored the final eight Gustavus points. Gustavus had two possessions in the last :37, but were unable to execute as Concordia hit three free-throws in the waning seconds of the contest for the 64-60 win.
Molly Mathiowetz (Fy., Sleepy Eye, Minn.) led all scorers with 17 points and five steals. Jess Vadnais (Sr., Hudson, Wis.) and Bri Radtke (So., Winsted, Minn.) joined Mathiowetz in double-figures as they scored 13 and 10 points, respectively. Gustavus forced 28 turnovers and created 12 steals to keep the Gusties in the contest, but shot 36% from the field and 23% from behind the three-point arc. Melanie Hageman was the only Cobber to reach double-digits with 14 points and eight rebounds.
Gustavus will return to the confines of Gus Young Court in St. Peter on Saturday for a 1:00 game against St. Thomas. Concordia will host Bethel on Saturday at 1:00 pm.