Same Inside Story Line In Series Sweep Over St. Benedict

ST. JOSEPH, Minn. (2/05/24)---Junior forward Makayla Anderson received the MIAC award for Defensive Player of the Week in the afternoon and then proved it was no fluke in the night.

Anderson went for a game-high 12 rebounds and added 16 points in helping Concordia beat St. Benedict 81-66 in a match-up between two of the Top 3 teams in the MIAC.

The Cobbers never trailed in the final 29 minutes of play as they swept the Bennies for the second straight season. CC has now won five straight against St. Ben's.

The win moves Concordia one step closer to finishing in the Top 2 of the conference standings. CC is 14-2 in league play and 15-4 overall. St. Benedict has its 3-game win streak slammed shut. They are now 12-8 overall and 10-6 in the MIAC.

For the second time this season, Concordia's size and athleticism proved to be too much for the Bennies. The Cobbers outscored St. Benedict 40-22 in points in the paint in St. Joseph and finished their season series by outscoring CSB 76-34 in points in the paint.

Anderson and fellow forward Greta Tollefson combined to go 13-for-25 from the floor and had 30 points and 19 rebounds.

The first 11 minutes of the game went back-and-forth with neither team holding more than a 4-point lead. CC went into the first break with a 1-point lead at 16-15, but then went on an 8-0 run and were never pushed from that point.

The Cobbers scored at least 21 points in the second, third and fourth quarters and broke the 80-point mark for the seventh time this season.

Concordia shot 47.8% (32-for-67) from the floor and 36.8% (7-for-19) from distance. It's the second straight game that the Cobbers have attempted 67 shots from the floor and finished with at least 30 makes. CC has connected on at least 30 field goals in five games this year.

The Cobbers put five players in double figures in scoring. Besides Anderson and Tollefson, Molly Musland went 5-for-6 from the field and 2-for-2 from outside the arc and posted 14 points. It's the second time in the last four games that she has scored at least 10 points.

Alexa Snesrud was 4-for-6 from the floor and had 11 points, while Carlee Sieben added 10 points to post her 16th double-digit scoring total of the year.      

Taylor Safranski came off the bench to claim a season-high five rebounds.  
       
UP NEXT: Concordia will now host a showdown at the top of the MIAC standings when they square off with league-leading Gustavus on Wednesday, Feb. 7 at 5:45 p.m.