As they went into their third home game of the season, the Spring Arbor University Lady Cougar ball handlers knew they had to give it their best - not just because it was a home game, but because since joining the Mid-Central Conference they had yet to defeat the St. Francis Cougars. During Wednesday night's game, that's exactly what they achieved.
The SAU Cougars defeated the St. Francis Cougars, 53-47, and proved that Spring Arbor is definitely a force to be reckoned with. Spring Arbor only allowed 14 turnovers compared with St. Francis' 25. Spring Arbor managed 17 offensive rebounds and threw 16/23 from the free throw line. Spring Arbor's record is now 6-4 overall, 1-1 in conference standings.
"This is a big win for us," said head coach Tara Kreklau. "Any conference win is big, but it is especially important to protect our home court."
The scoreboard leaders are Lyndsey Norman, who had 16 points, eight rebounds, two assists and four steals. Following close behind with 12 points was Kristen Miller, who also had eight rebounds, three assists and one steal. Kara Buehrer notched eight points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals.
"Both teams played well defensively - I thought this contributed greatly to the poor shooting percentages of both teams. Even though we struggled shooting the ball, I was pleased we stepped up and made plays on both ends of the court when we needed to," said Kreklau. "Our post players did an excellent job defending the post players of St. Francis."
Kreklau was happy to see a wide assortment of her players contributing to the night's win. "Freshmen post players Kelly Bruggeman and Sarah Wellman gave us a huge lift off the bench when our other post players got into foul trouble. Bruggeman hit two baskets in the first half that helped us gain the momentum."
As the clock winded down, the teams came within two points of each other. But Spring Arbor did not allow St. Francis to gain the upper hand. SAU stepped up the offense, thereby sealing the deal on the win.
"Two huge offensive rebounds in the last minute of the game allowed us to take more time off the clock and eventually we went to the free throw line and extended the lead. I thought our effort and level of concentration was outstanding the entire game."
Spring Arbor will next play on Sat., Dec. 6, against Finlandia University at home. The game starts at 3 p.m.
