Inside Warm, Outside Cold In First Loss Of The Season

ARDEN HILLS, Minn. (12/02/22)---Like a warm house on a blustery winter day, the inside was much warmer than the outside for the Cobbers at Bethel.

Concordia outscored the Royals 31-25 for the two "inside" periods of play, but it was the two "outside" quarters that sent CC to its first loss. The Cobbers were outscored 30-17 in the first and fourth quarters as they fell 55-48 to the Royals.

Concordia (4-1, 3-1 MIAC) picked the wrong time to post its two lowest scoring periods of the season. CC was held to 11 points in the opening quarter and only six points in the final period of play. The final total of 48 points for the Cobbers is the fewest they have scored all season – by 16 points.

The game was a 2-point battle for the first 4-minutes of play until Bethel finished the first quarter on a 9-3 run. CC was able to trim the deficit to five points at the halftime break, and then took a 35-33 lead on a made field goal from Symone Beld with 4:47 left in the third quarter. The teams traded leads and had a pair of tie scores down the stretch of the third quarter before Bethel grabbed a 44-42 lead at the end of the third period of play.

Concordia failed to score in the first 7:53 of the fourth quarter, but were still within four points after Emily Beseman knocked down a jumper to cut the lead to 48-44 with 2:07 left. Bethel got a big "and 1" on their next possession to push the lead to seven points, and then the team went even at 4-4 for the final minute of play.

The Cobbers also had their coldest shooting game of the year. CC shot 26.4% (14-for-53) from the field and 25.0% (4-for-16) from outside the arc.

Bethel (3-3, 3-1 MIAC) held the advantage around the basket in the game. The Royals had a 40-31 advantage in rebounds and a 30-18 edge in points in the paint.

Concordia had three players account for 35 of their 48 points. Beseman finished with a team-high 14 points, while Makayla Anderson had 11 points and Carlee Sieben came away with 10 points.

Anderson also grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds to record her second double-double of the season.

UP NEXT: Concordia will stay on the road for its next game. The Cobbers will play at Augsburg on Wednesday, Dec. 7 at 7:15 p.m.