Wisconsin-Superior runs away with second-consecutive women's hoops tourney title
ST. PAUL, Minn.---For the second-straight season, the University of Wisconsin-Superior found itself hosting the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) women's basketball tournament title game, this time facing a University of Minnesota Morris squad that it defeated twice in the regular season.
In the two team's third meeting, though, the Yellowjackets dominated and cruised to their second-consecutive UMAC tournament title with a 72-46 win and earned the conference's automatic qualifying bid to the NCAA tournament Saturday afternoon.
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Tournament Site |
Box Score |
The two teams met just a week ago in a game that decided the regular season championship. The Yellowjackets took both of those regualr season matchups, but their win Saturday was more decisive and showed why they have dominated the league since joining just two years ago.
At the outset, the Yellowjackets aggresive and intense defense pressured the Cougars who turned the ball over 23 times on the day. However, the game started off close as Minnesota Morris grabbed an early lead before Wisconsin-Superior went up just 8-7 after 10 minutes of play.
In the second quarter, the Cougars took the lead twice by one point before the Yellowjackets went on a 20-6 run to end the half with a 30-17 lead. They continued to push the pace in the second half en route to victory.
The Yellowjackets were led by Justine Larson who was named the Tournament MVP for her 22-point performance Saturday. The senior added 12 rebounds to her day for a dobule-double, as well as adding three assists, two steals and a block. She finished the touranment with 29 points over a two game span and nine assists.
Hailey Kontny had another strong performance for the Yellowjackets with 20 points, two assists and a steal, while Bailee Bartunek was dominating on the glass with 14 rebounds.
Bailey Miller led the scoring for the Cougars with 11 points off the bench on a 5-of-9 shooting performance. Abby VanKempen tallied 13 rebounds, while Kendra Raths picked up eight points.
The Yellowjackets will await their NCAA postseason fate Monday when the NCAA hosts the
Division III selection show at 1:30 p.m.
All tournament information including scores, recaps, team information and more can be found on the
UMAC Women’s Basketball page. Keep up with all of the tournament action on
Twitter and
Instagram using
#UMACchamp.
Playoff Schedule
Quarterfinal Round – Monday, Feb. 20
No. 4 Bethany Lutheran def. No. 5 Martin Luther, 72-69 |
Box Score |
Semifinal Round – Wednesday, Feb. 22
No. 1 Wisconsin-Superior def. No. 4 Bethany Lutheran, 69-54 |
Box Score |
No. 2 Minnesota Morris def. No. 3 Northwestern, 71-62 |
Box Score |
Championship – Saturday, Feb. 25
No. 1 Wisconsin-Superior AT No. 2 Minnesota Morris, 72-46 |
Box Score |