Huge Win At Gustavus Leads To Tie For Second Place

ST. PETER, Minn. (1/19/13)—An Emily Thesing free throw with 2-seconds left in the second half gave Concordia a 50-49, comeback win at Gustavus on Saturday. The Cobbers erased an eight-point halftime deficit to tie the Gusties for second place in the conference standings.

Concordia entered the game in third place in the MIAC standings but with the win knocks the Gusties out of a first-place tie. Both teams are now 11-4 in all games and 10-2 in league play.  

Concordia fell behind from the opening tap and chased the game throughout the entire first half. The Cobbers trailed by as many as 14 in the first half but then staged an 8-2 rally at the end of the first period to pull to within six points at the break.

The end-of-the-first-half surge helped the Cobbers' success in the second half. Concordia outscored Gustavus 29-20 in the final 20 minutes of play. In addition to the momentum swing carried into the second half, the Cobbers started to find its shooting rhythm. After shooting just 32.1% (9-for-28) from the field, 15.4% (2-for-13) from 3-point range and 33.3% (1-for-3) from the free thow line in the first half, Concordia shot 39.3% (11for-28) from the floor, 40.0% (4-for-10) from behind the arc and 60.0% (3-for-5) from the foul line.

Concordia finally got a lead with 8:05 left in the second half. For that moment, the teams traded baskets  with the Cobbers able to hold the lead until the 1:15 mark. Gustavus knocked down a 3-point basket to grab a 49-47 lead but then junior guard Erika Jossart connected on a long-range 2-point basket to tie the score at 49-49 with 38 seconds to play. Concordia then forced a 3-point attempt and Thesing hauled down the rebound with 8 seconds to play. That set the stage for the last-second free throw heroics. Thesing was fouled and went to the line with 2-seconds to play. She made her first free throw but then missed the second and the Gusties were unable to collect the rebound and get get off the game-winning shot.

Thesing finished with a team-high 13 points.  She also had five rebounds and two steals. Alexandra Lippert had 12 points, a team-high six rebounds and three blocks. It is the fourth time in the last five games that Lippert has scored in double figures. She has also recorded three blocks in each of the last two games and has at least one block in the past five games. Alley Fisher finished with 11 points and added five rebounds and two assists.

The Cobbers will have only a two-day turnaround before facing league-leading St. Thomas. Concordia and the No.12-ranked Tommies will square off on Monday, Jan. 21 at 5:45 p.m. in Moorhead.