Feb. 27, 2010

Box Score

The Peacock women's basketball team took the floor in Dorman Gym for their final game of the 2009-10 season against the #19 Golden Bears of Concordia University, St. Paul. Upper Iowa made a strong push for an upset of their nationally-ranked opponents, but couldn't quite hold up for the full forty minutes falling 67-55.

Upper Iowa scored the first seven points of the game and held the top team in the Northern Sun Conference scoreless for the first five minutes of the game. At the midway point of the first half, the Golden Bears had crept back to tie the game at 11-11. The Peacocks were led by Cassandra Deiters, who scored six points on three buckets in the paint. The home team continued to force their guests into tough and contested shots, while working the ball inside on offense.

After falling behind 21-19, the Peacocks scored four straight thanks to a Lana Otting jumper and a pair of free throws from Carrie Thoma with just over four minutes to play in the half. The Peacocks scored a quick five points in the final minute on a Chelsea Arndt jumper and Chelsea Garcia's second trifecta of the game, but the Golden Bears kept pace with five of their own to tie the game at 28-28 as the teams headed to the locker rooms.

UIU was led by their two centers, Thoma and Deiters, who combined for 13 points and 6 rebounds. CU got balanced scoring as eight Golden Bears marked the scoring column led by Maurika Hickman and Jamie Jones, who each netted 5 points.

Jennifer Herrick came out of the locker room ready to go dropping in two long balls in the opening minutes of the half to give UIU a 34-28 lead. Concordia rallied with a 16-5 run to retake the lead, 44-39. A bucket by Deiters at the elbow brought UIU within two, 47-45, before Paige DeVine scored her first points of the night on an old-fashioned three-point play to put the home team ahead 48-47.

The teams exchanged baskets and the lead prior to three straight baskets by Concordia that gave them a three-point advantage, 55-50, with just over four minutes to play. Karina Berinobis kept the ladies in white in the game as she dialed up her third three-pointer to cut the margin to two, 55-53.

The Peacocks seemed to run out of gas on the offensive end over the final four minutes of the game as the Golden Bears outscored the home team 12-2 to claim the 67-55 victory.

Upper Iowa was led by Herrick's 12 points, while Berinobis and Thoma each chipped in 9 and Garcia and Deiters put home 8. Herrick, Berinobis, Thoma, and Garcia, all freshman, combined to shoot 12-22 from the field including 7-13 from beyond the three-point line.

Following the game, seniors Paige DeVine and Inga Briede were honored for their dedication and years of commitment to the Peacock women's basketball program. Briede finished her two-year career at UIU with 184 points and 90 rebounds in 38 games. DeVine, a four-year letterwinner, played in 108 games starting 76 of them. The St. Charles, Minnesota native recorded 768 points, 403 rebounds, and 115 assists in a Peacock uniform.

The Peacocks' finish the 2009-10 season with a 2-25 record overall and an 0-20 mark in Northern Sun Conference action.