The Spring Arbor University women's basketball team kicked off their 2010-11 season in style, slipping past Concordia University of Ann Arbor, Michigan 66-65 on Spring Arbor's campus Tuesday night. 

SAU dictated the tempo of the game in the first half, limiting the visiting Cardinals to 22 points as the Cougars opened up a 12 point lead going into the intermission. (34-22).

Concordia worked their way back into the game in the second frame however, as the SAU lead slowly dwindled until the Cardinals eventually took a one point lead at 65-64 with just 22 seconds remaining.

The Cougars showed incredible intestinal fortitude and remained calm in their final possession. Spring Arbor worked the ball into the post to Melissa Tejkl, who put up a two point effort with just three ticks remaining on the clock. Tejkl's shot didn't convert, but Kelly Bruggeman was came to the rescue, grabbing the offensive rebound and knocking down a short layup as time expired to give the Cougars a season opening win.

Kristin Kotarba led SAU with a solid night, pouring in 19 points and passing out five assists to go along with four rebounds. Bruggeman was also stellar, netting 16 points and grabbing three boards. Kate Bement chipped in with 12 points and a pair of assists.

Spring Arbor went 16-22 from the charity stripe and shot a solid 43% from the field in the win.

"Collectively, as a team, I thought we showed a lot of toughness," commented SAU head coach Tara Kreklau. "Concordia is a very good, physical, outstanding rebounding team. We battled with them on the boards. We played an excellent first half, dictating the flow of the game, limiting them to 22 points. I'm very pleased with our performance in this game. It was great win and a good game for us to learn from."

Spring Arbor starts the season at 1-0 while Concordia falls to 1-1 with the loss. The Cougars will travel to Rochester, Michigan to face the Rochester College Warriors on Thursday, November 4^th. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m.