Strong second half leads No. 1 Vikings to second-straight UMAC tourney title
MANKATO, Minn.---The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) women’s basketball tournament ended with No. 1 Bethany Lutheran College using a strong second half to overcome a halftime defict defeat No. 2 University of Wisconsin-Superior 64-58 for a second-consecutive postseason championship Saturday.
| Box Score |
Having played just one week ago with the Vikings emerging as the regular season champion with a dominant performance, the conference tournament rematch was sure to be a closer contest. The game didn't disappoint as the No. 2 Yellowjackets came out matching the Vikings early as the two played to a 17-17 tie after the first quarter.
The Yellowjackets pulled away 30-24 at the half after outscoring the Vikings 13-7 in the second quarter. The 'Jackets continued to push the pace to start the second half scoring the opening bucket before taking a nine-point lead with 6:33 remaining in the third quarter.
Over the next four minutes, the Vikings came up big defensively and started making shots that helped them tie the game at 37-37 with 2:28 to play in the third. The game was tied 41-41 at the end of the quarter before the Vikings eventually pulled away outscoring the Yellowjackets 23-17 in the final 10 minutes.
Hanna Geistfeld continued her impressive junior season scoring a game-high 20 points and adding 11 rebounds for her 18th double-double of the season. She also finished shooting 8-for-19 from the field with four assists helping her earn the UMAC Tournament MVP nod. Geistfeld finished the tournament with 37 points and 23 rebounds.
The Vikings also got significant contributions from Jordan Martinez and Abby Olson who scored 11 and 10 points, respectively. The Yellowjackets were led by Mackenzie Kmecik for the second-straight game as the senior posted 14 points in her final game. Emily Carpenter was the only other player to score in double figures for the Yellowjackets with 10 points. The Yellowjackets end their season 18-9 overall.
The No. 1 Vikings have earned the conference's automatic qualifying bid to the NCAA tournament. They will learn their NCAA postseason fate Monday at 1:30 p.m. during the selection show on
ncaa.com.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Quarterfinal Round – Monday, Feb. 24
No. 4 Minnesota Morris def. No. 5 North Central, 69-65 |
Box Score |
NCU Recap |
UMM Recap |
Semifinal Round – Wednesday, Feb. 26
No. 1 Bethany Lutheran def. No. 4 Minnesota Morris, 53-43 |
Box Score |
BLC Recap |
UMM Recap |
No. 2 Wisconsin-Superior def. No. 3 Northwestern, 90-83 |
Box Score |
UNW Recap |
UWS Recap |
Championship – Saturday, Feb. 29
No. 1 Bethany Lutheran def. No. 2 Wisconsin-Superior, 64-58 |
Box Score |
BLC Recap | UWS Recap |
Tournament Championship Page