Lady Cougars Battle Hard but Fall in the End to Dakota Wesleyan in NAIA Opening Round
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Saint Francis (Ind.) (17-10) | 18 | 15 | 15 | 10 | 58 |
|
Dakota Wesleyan (27-7) | 12 | 18 | 17 | 22 | 69 |
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – On Friday afternoon, the 13 seeded University of Saint Francis Lady Cougars (17-10) traveled to Omaha, Nebraska for the Opening Round of the 2022 NAIA Tournament presented by Ballogy when they faced the 4 seeded Dakota Wesleyan University Tigers (27-7) but could not overcome the relentless attack in the fourth quarter as they fell 69-58.
As the game got underway, the Lady Cougars came out strong in all aspects. Sophomore guard Reganne Pate got the offense started with a three-pointer and then a back-and-forth battle ensued for the next couple minutes before the Lady Cougars defense stepped up.
With the game tied at eight, Saint Francis scored six unanswered points to pull ahead 14-8 while forcing consecutive stops on defense. The Lady Cougars defense was strong during the first quarter and their offense outscored the Tigers 18-12 in the frame as they led 18-12 going into the second quarter.
However, the Tigers turned the tide in the second as they scored six unanswered points themselves to tie the game back up, and both teams went back-and-forth for the next several minutes.
Then in the last minute of the first half, a long three-pointer by freshman guard Chloe McKnight tied the game at 30, and then Pate got the ball and put it up and nailed another three as the buzzer sounded to give the Lady Cougars the lead in dramatic fashion as they led the Tigers 33-30 at halftime.
During the first half, the Lady Cougars held the Tigers to just 33 percent from the floor while getting three steals and three blocks.
Heading into the third quarter, scoring became scarcer from both sides. Despite constant pressure from the Tigers defense, the Lady Cougars managed to keep their lead and battled Dakota Wesleyan possession for possession.
The Tigers outscored the Lady Cougars 17-15 in the frame, but Saint Francis still held the lead going into the fourth quarter, ahead 48-47.
In the early minutes of the fourth quarter, the Tigers surged back and tied the game at 50 with a long three-pointer of their own, and then went ahead with a couple free throws and another three to extend their lead by five over the Lady Cougars before Saint Francis called a timeout.
Unfortunately for the Lady Cougars, the Tigers caught the momentum and never gave it back as they extended their lead to nine points with three minutes remaining and dealt the Lady Cougars the tough loss after being outscored 22-10 in the fourth quarter.
Throughout the game, the Lady Cougars shot 39 percent from the floor, 28 percent from beyond the three-point line, and 75 percent from the free throw line. Junior forward Meleah Kunkel led the team in scoring with 15 points and in rebounds with nine.
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