Jan. 24, 2009
Final Stats
The UIU women's basketball team returned to the court on Saturday to face the #18 Dragons of Minnesota State University Moorhead. The Peacocks and Dragons had not met this season, but in last year's games Upper Iowa matched up with the Dragons very well.
The two teams opened the game evenly through the first eleven minutes of the game although they took different approaches on offense. Upper Iowa was able to score on six free throws and three pointers in the early going, while MSU Moorhead put the ball inside the paint to get their points. At the 9:06 mark in the first half, the teams were tied at 17-17. Upper Iowa broke the tie with a quick 10-0 run that saw the home team take a 27-17 lead with under seven minutes to play in the opening half. The Peacocks maintained their lead over the Dragons through the buzzer, but the nationally ranked visitors chipped away at the point gap over the final two minutes of the half. UIU led 34-31 at the break.
Upper Iowa shot 39% from the floor, but hit on 8 of their 9 free throw opportunities. Lana Otting led UIU with 12 and Iredale hit for 11 in the first half. Iredale also pulled down 7 rebounds.
The teams came out hungry in the second half. After four minutes of action, the Peacocks clung to a one point lead, 43-42. Upper Iowa extended their lead to nine with just over eleven minutes to play thanks to a 14-6 run. The run was fueled by ten points from the hand of Iredale. The Dragons were able to close the gap to four, 59-55, but a lay up by Lyndsay Westgaard pushed the Peacock lead back to six, 61-55 with eight and a half minutes to play.
The Dragons cut the lead to four a second time and looked like they had a sure turnover, but Otting gathered the ball in and found Iredale for another three pointer to give the home team a 64-57 lead with the clock showing 6:55. MSU Moorhead got an inside basket slow the momentum that UIU was building and a questionable fifth foul was called on Westgaard, the Peacock center. Another inside bucket pulled the Dragons to within 64-61. Otting drained a pair at the charity stripe, but Chris Falzon hit her first trifecta of the game to bring the visitors to within two, 66-64, with 4:42 on the clock.
Two Otting free throws and a fastbreak lay in by Chelsea Arndt pushed the UIU advantage to six, 70-64. The Dragons answered with another basket in the paint to pull within four. Coach Brown called for an isolation play and Iredale took advantage by driving in for a score to give UIU a 72-66 lead with 2:25 to play. Two Dragon free throws and a lay in by Meghan Rettke closed the gap to two with 1:38 on the clock. Rettke pulled MSU Moorhead even as the game hit the minute mark, but Iredale answered with basket of her own to regain Upper Iowa's two point advantage. Rettke tied the game once again with 28 seconds to play at 74-74. UIU's final shot missed and the game moved to an overtime period.
The Dragons opened the overtime the same way they ended regulation by pounding the ball inside for an old-fashioned three-point play by Alison Nash-Gerlach and a lay in by Betsy Dickson. The two scores gave MSU Moorhead a five-point lead, 79-74, with just over three minutes to play in overtime. A pair of free throws extended the lead to seven, but Otting kept the Peacocks' upset bid alive with a three-point play and a pair of free throws that saw Upper Iowa pull within two, 81-79, with 1:33 on the clock. Rettke hit an inside basket for the visitors and she added a free throw on the play to give her team an 84-79 lead. Six free throws pushed the deficit to eleven points, 90-79, before Paige De Vine was able to score UIU's final points of the night. In the end, UIU's upset bid fell just short as they lost 90-81.
Iredale led all scorers with 30 points on the night and also pulled down 12 rebounds. Otting scored 23 and handed out six assists on the night. DeVine and Westgaard both scored 10 and Chelsea Arndt netted 8.
The Peacocks will return to the court next Saturday for a Northern Sun match up with the Warriors of Winona State University. The teams will tip off at 6 p.m. in Winona, Minnesota.
