Vicky Peterson made two free throws with :02.7 remaining in overtime to seal a 77-73 victory for the Gustavus women’s basketball team over Carleton in Northfield. The Knights tied the thriller with :00.5 left in regulation on a Sarah Lincoln jumper, but were not able to score on key possessions down the stretch. Jess Vadnais scored a game-high 25 points as four Gustavus players finished with double-digits. Gustavus closed out the first round of the MIAC schedule with a 7-4 record and an 8-6 overall mark. Carleton dropped to 8-6 overall and 7-4 in conference play.
The contest started slowly with both offenses struggling in the first half before Gustavus gained a 17-14 lead with 6:43 remaining in the period. Both teams would exchange basket for the rest of the half as the Gusties would hold a 27-23 lead. The Gustavus defense was the story in the first 20 minutes as the Gusties forced the Knights to shot 29% from the field on 7-24 shooting including 1-7 from behind the three-point arc. Gustavus also forced Carleton to commit 14 turnovers as the Gustie bench outscored the Knight bench 14-2. Emily Nelson contributed to that spark off the bench with nine points on three three-point baskets.
Gustavus would build an eight-point 42-34 lead with 13:14 remaining on the game clock largely due to jump shots from Julia Schultz and Molly Mathiowetz. Carleton began to chip away at the deficit with a 12-3 run, including seven points from Amber Connor, to gain its first lead since 15:49 on the clock in the first half for a 56-55 lead. Both squads would exchange possessions before the Gusties got a 65-63 lead with :38 left. Carleton got the ball back with :07 left and drove down the floor as Jess Vadnais swiped the ball away from Hannah Oken-Berg. Unfortunately, Gustavus would not be able to hang onto the ball as it went out of bounds to Carleton with :00.5 on the clock. The Knights would perfectly execute an out-of-bounds play to Sarah Lincoln for the lay-up as time expired.
Both squads would battle back and forth in the overtime period as the score remained knotted at 73-73 with :37 left before the seniors for Gustavus stepped up big. Jess Vadnais was fouled on the ensuing possession and hit both free-throws to give the Gusties a 75-73 lead. Carleton would come down the court where Vicky Peterson stepped in front of an entry pass to Sarah Lincoln. The Knights were forced to foul Peterson and sank two free-throws to seal the victory.
In addition to Vadnais’ 25 points, the Gusties received offensive support from Emily Nelson, Molly Mathiowetz, and Bri Radtke. Nelson pitched in 15 points and Mathiowetz contributed 13 points as the Gustie bench finished with 28 points compared to 10 for Carleton. Radtke also finished in double-digits with 10 points. Carleton was paced by Amber Connor with 22 points and Hannah Oken-Berg with 20. Gustavus went 22-30 from behind the charity stripe, while the Knights went 18-31, including 8-15 in the second half.
Gustavus will play Macalester on Wednesday night at 5:45 on the campus of St. Catherine’s.
<a href=