(Photo courtesy of David Faulkner, SPX Sports)
SAINT PETER, Minn. – The No. 17 Gustavus women’s basketball team hosted Saint Mary’s Wednesday night and defeated the Cardinals 82-65. With the win the Gusties improve to 11-1 overall and 7-0 in the MIAC while the Cardinals 1-10 overall and 1-5 in the conference.
“It was just a battle, every conference game you play is like that,” said Head Coach Laurie Kelly. “82 points is a great offensive output for us, but we allowed 65 points because we made some mistakes down the stretch that we need to learn from. We knew getting the ball inside was our advantage and Caitlin and Paige played well for us.”
The Gusties got out to an early start jumping out to an 11-5 lead in the early going. The Cardinals would cut the deficit to 15-14 with 3:29 remaining but the Gusties would re-extend their lead to 22-17 at the end of the first quarter.
Gustavus came out of the break strong, scoring the first nine points to go up 31-17 less than three minutes into the second frame. The Gusties would build their lead to 18 points with 1:46 remaining in the half, but Saint Mary’s would rally late, trimming the deficit to 42-28 at the break.
The Cardinals used solid defense and quick transition buckets to bring the score to 42-34 early in the third. The Gusties would respond, going on a 14-5 run of their own to regain control of the game and take a 56-39 lead with 3:18 to play in the quarter. Gustavus would outscore the Cardinals by two the final 3:18 to carry a 19 point lead into the final frame.
The Gusties extended their lead to 22 with 7:19 to play in the contest, but a 17-6 Cardinal run would pull the visitors within 11 with 2:17 to play. Gustavus would gain a few easy baskets after breaking the Saint Mary’s press late and make free throws to ice out the contest.
Paige Richert (Jr., Comfrey) lead the way with 23 points and 10 rebounds, posting her second consecutive double-double, while Caitlin Rorman (Fy., Blue Earth) was also strong inside, shooting 7-of-8 from the floor and tallying 20 points to go along with 7 rebounds. Ava Gonsorowski (Jr., Esko) was also in double figures with 18 points while contributing five rebounds and four assists.
Gustavus will next be in action when they travel to Arden Hills, Minn. to take on Bethel at 3 p.m.