Slow Leak Leads To Overtime Loss

MOORHEAD, Minn. (2/6/15) --- The Cobbers built up a 14-point lead late in the third quarter but watched as Gustavus steadily came back in the fourth quarter and then overcame Concordia in overtime to post a 75-72 win.

The Gusties outscored Concordia 12-9 in the additional five minutes to notch the three-point win and end CC's six-game win streak.

Gustavus' largest lead came at seven points in the overtime period with 2:35 to play, and the Cobbers ran out of time in a rapid attempt to overcome the deficit.

The lone lead change in the game came in the overtime. Lindsey Johnson hit a free throw with 4:13 to left in OT to put the Gusties ahead for the first time.

The loss drops Concordia into a two-way tie for third place with Gustavus as they share identical 10-4 records in the MIAC. Gustavus improves to 15-6 overall while CC slips to 14-7.

The Cobbers outshot Gustavus significantly, shooting 54% (27-of-50) compared to the Gusties' 44.8% (26-of-58).

The Gusties hurt Concordia on the glass with second chance points. Though CC outrebounded Gustavus 36-33, GAC hauled down 17 offensive rebounds and scored 28 second-chance points.

Concordia jumped out to a 16-11 lead after the first quarter that included a triple from Olivia Johnson and another long ball from Hannah Jeske in the closing seconds of the quarter.

The Cobbers extended their lead to 26-14 in the second quarter. In the first 2:29 they went on a 10-3 run that included five points from Greta Walsh and a trifecta from Katie Rosenfeldt.

Gustavus went on an 11-2 run over the last 7:31 of the first half, with the lone basket coming from Jenna Januschka at the 2:32 mark. The GAC run cut the Concordia lead to just 28-25 at the intermission.

CC started fast out of the third quarter as well. Januschka scored on the first three posssessions and Walsh buried a long ball to give the Cobbs a 37-26 advantage with 6:50 to play in the third quarter.

Two possessions later Walsh connected from distance again, followed by another triple from Cassidy Rahman on the ensuing trip down the floor that made it 43-29.

The Gusties closed the gap in the final 3:16 of the quarter by scoring eight unanswered points to make it 45-40 heading to the final ten minutes.

GAC scored the first four points of the fourth quarter to extend their run to 12-0 over a four-minute span and then just trailed by one.

Johnson connected on a jumper and Rosenfeldt hit a 3-pointer to build some cushion but Mikayla Miller hit a long ball and then got a pick-pocket steal and scored in transition.

With 4:07 to play, Jeske hit 3-pointers on consecutive possessions near the Cobber bench to give CC a 59-52 lead, but Miller pumped in another quick five points and after another pair of GAC buckets CC trailed 63-61.

Johnson swiftly hit a shot on the wing to tie it up and send the game to overtime.

In the additional five minutes, the Gusties scored on four consecutive possessions to jump ahead 71-64 with 2:35 and the Cobbers were playing catch up.

Concordia scored on four straight trips, with Jeske cutting the deficit to 74-72 with nine seconds left.

GAC hit one of two bonus free throws and CC called a timeout with the ball advancing to halfcourt. With under 3-seconds to play, CC drew up a play in the timeout but the inbounds pass was fumbled and stolen by the Gusties and time ran out.

Walsh poured in 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 4-of-5 from downtown and 2-of-4 from the charity stripe to lead the Cobbers.

CAREER-HIGH HANNAH
Hannah Jeske tallied a career-high 17 points on 6-of-10 shooting and 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. She also added three rebounds and five assists.

DOUBLE-FIGURES JJ
Jenna Januschka scored 14 points to post her third double-digit scoring game in a row and for the sixth time in the last seven games. She has scored ten or more points in 18 of 21 games this season.

WHAT'S NEXT?
Concordia will travel to Hamline (3-18 overall/1-13 MIAC) on Wednesday, February 10 to take on the Pipers at 7:45 p.m. Hamline is coming off a 75-56 loss against St. Thomas and is currently on a 10-game skid. CC went 1-1 against the Pipers last season and it will be the first and only time the teams will meet in 2015-16.