No. 6 women's basketball cruises past Hamline 71-35 in the Miac Playoff semi-final

Saint Peter, Minn. – No. 6 Gustavus Women's Basketball Team opened the post-season against Hamline on Thursday, February 27, and set a convincing 71-35 victory over the Pipers to reach the Miac Playoff championship for the fourth season in a row.

The Gusties (25-1.17-1 Miac) shot 48 percent (24-to-50) from the field and 41.2 percent from the three-point range and held the pipe on single digits in each of the last three quarters. Hamline struggled to shoot against the best defense of the Miac and only turned 13-against-52 (25.0 percent) off the field on Thursday evening.

Hamline (19-8.13-5) entered the game as a top three-point shooting team in the conference, but it was the gusties that let them fly in the first two quarters and went 4 against 7 in the first 20 minutes, including 3-on-4 Emily Bowron (So.

The Pipers fought against the nationally rieaded Gusties with a three times of just one point in the first quarter and forced eight early sales, but struggled to slow down the crime with high octane, led by the consistent game of both Emma Kniefel (5th, Medford, Minn.) And Izzy fast (5. Brooklyn Park, Minn.). Gustavus was never in the game and took over his first two-digit lead with a three-point jumper from Bowron in the middle of the second quarter to achieve a 23-13 advantage. Kniefel hit the half-time with a lead of 17: 19 and led the gusties to a 7-by-12 mark in the second quarter (58.3 percent).

Although the Gusties had only shot 3-ear-14 (21.4 percent) out of the ground in the third quarter, the Gusties Hamline also held a limited crime. He pressed six sales and managed six offensive rebounds to keep control of the ball and the lead with 45: 26.

The fourth quarter contained nine players in front of head coach Laurie KellyThe bank, which quickly completed its second double double of the season, put in the shade for the first time this year. The Gusties got three different players such as Kniefel, Bowron and Olivia Grothaus (Fy., Hudson, Wisconsin) scored three from a distance for 26 points to Hamline's Nine in the last quarter. Gustavus forced eight Piper sales and left only two shots from the ground in the last 10 minutes.

The 48 percent of the Gusties from the field corresponded to the team's fifth best brand this season, while the three-point mark of 41.2 percent is bound to the fourth best. The Gusties rounded off Hamline 35-27 and showed 10 offensive boards for 13 Second Chance Points and achieved 19 23 Hamline sales. Hamlines 25.0 field target percentage is the second lowest of an opponent that Gustavus was faced with this season.

The reigning Miac offensive player of the week Kniefel performed all players with 16 points with 5-on-7 shooting (71.4 percent) and an identical 5-to-7 mark from the free-wing line. The double double from Quick sat down from 14 points and 10 rebounds. Seven of her rebound came at the defensive end of the court. Bowron ended the 4-on-6 (66.7 percent) and 3: 4 from three-point land for 12 points. All three seniors of the Gusties – Morgan Kelly (Saint Peter, Minn.), Kylie Baranick (Maple Grove, Minn.) And Rachel Kawiecki (Richfield, Minnesota) exhibited three templates, while four different players went a few steals.

Lauren Cooper from Hamline led the visitors with 11 points. No piper got more than five rebounds, and 12 different players turned the ball at least once.

The Gustavus women's basketball team will return to the fourth MIAC championship in a row on Saturday, March 1st, at 3 p.m. Bethel has presented his first championship over a 79:50 win against Saint Benedict on Thursday evening since 2020.

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