Cobbers Thwart Oles To Remain Unbeaten At Home

MOORHEAD, Minn. (2/14/24)---Concordia stepped up at the right moments in the third and fourth quarters to thwart St. Olaf's upset attempt and remain unbeaten at home this season.

The Cobbers used an 18-2 run at the end of the third quarter and the start of the fourth frame to pull away from the Oles and post a 75-57 win.

The victory is the 18th straight at home for Concordia in a streak that dates back to last season. The Cobbers are 10-0 inside Memorial Auditorium this year.

With the win, Concordia upped its season record to 18-4 in all games and 17-2 in league play.

The Cobber led for the entire game against St. Olaf but were never able to put the Oles away for the first 30 minutes of the game. CC outscored St. Olaf 21-11 in the first quarter before the Oles turned the table and held an 18-13 advantage in the second period.

Concordia was never able to push the advantage to more than six points in the opening 3:30 of the third quarter and saw their lead shrink to three points with 3:37 left in the quarter.

The Cobbers were able to push the lead to seven points at 53-46 after the third-quarter break and then scored the first 12 points of the fourth frame to finally get some breathing room at 67-48 with 4:10 left in regulation.

Senior Emily Beseman led the charge for CC at the start of the fourth quarter. She scored eight of the team's 12 points in the decisive 12-0 run.

Concordia won the gamer with its pressure defense. The Cobbers forced 21 turnovers from the Oles and turned those miscues into a 21-2 advantage in points off of turnovers.

The defense was able to overcome Concordia's 20.8% (5-for-24) shooting from 3-point range and 39.7% mark from the floor.

CC also held a clear edge at the free throw line where they went 16-for-20 (80.0%) as opposed to 6-for-9 (66.7%) for St. Olaf.

Beseman posted a team-high 18 points as she was 5-for-9 from the floor and 2-for-5 from outside the arc. She also came away with six rebounds, two assists and two steals.

Concordia had three players who all finished with 12 points. Greta Tollefson was another key factor in the game as she gave the Cobbers an inside scoring presence in the first half. She was 5-for-10 from the field to post her dozen points.

Carlee Sieben had 12 points and recorded a game-high six assists, while Makayla Anderson had four boards to go with her 12 points.

UP NEXT: Concordia will host St. Scholastica in the final game of the regular season on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 1 p.m.