Who Needs 3-Pointers

STORY LINE: Led by senior Kirstin Simmons, Concordia used a strong inside game to outscore St. Benedict in three of the four quarters and come away with a 74-68 win in a non-conference match-up in St. Joseph. The Cobbers outscored the Bennies 44-28 in points in the paint, held a 35-29 edge in rebounds and a 10-2 margin in second chance points to earn their second win of the season.

RECORDS: Concordia ended a 12-day break by ending their 1-game losing streak and evened their overall record at 2-2. St. Benedict loses for the second straight game and also has their record pushed to the .500 level at 2-2.

SECOND HALF SUCCESS: Concordia outscored St. Benedict 17-14 in the first quarter but then trailed 42-35 at the halftime break. The Cobbers then used their halftime adjustments to record a 39-26 edge in the second half. CC held a 24-15 advantage in the third quarter and then held off a late Bennie rally to outscore CSB 15-11 in the final period of play. St. Benedict cut the lead to 72-68 with 11-seconds remaining but senior Grace Wolhowe sank two free throws in the final five seconds to put the game out of reach.

WE DON'T NEED NO STINKIN' 3-POINTERS: Concordia's starting 5 accomplished a rare feat on Tuesday as not one player attempted a 3-point shot. The Cobbers were 4-for-8 from behind the arc with all eight attempts coming from players off the bench. It is the first time in program history that not one of the starting 5 attempted a shot from outside the arc. Sophomore guard Amber Lingen recorded half of the CC long-range attempts as she went 2-for-4 and finished with eight points. 

SPECIAL K: Kirstin Simmons finished the game with a career-high 17 points and also hauled down six rebounds to lead the Cobber offense. Her previous career high point total in a single game was 14 points which she recorded three times last season. Simmons' six rebounds included three offensive rebounds which were all turned into second chance points. Simmons was 8-for-15 from the floor and her 15 field goal attempts is also a career high.

YOU CAN'T SPELL INSIDE GAME WITHOUT AN "E": Junior Mira Ellefson was another hue part of the Cobbers' inside success. She finished with a game-high seven rebounds and also put up 14 points. Her seven rebounds is a season best and her 14 points runs her streak of double-digit scoring totals to three games. Ellefson now leads Concordia in scoring with a 14.5 ppg average.

DOUBLE-DIGIT DEPTH: Simmons and Ellefson were two of the four Cobber players who finished in double figures. Senior Grace Wolhowe was 4-for-9 from the floor and finished with 10 points while freshman Mary Sem was 5-for-8 and recorded a season-high 10 points. Wolhowe is second on the team in scoring with a 13.5 ppg average.

UP NEXT: Concordia will open up MIAC play when they travel to St. Paul to take on Hamline on Saturday, Dec. 1 at 1 p.m. The Pipers are 3-2 on the season and won their first three games of the season. HU was picked to finish ninth in the preseason coaches' poll.