Dara Zack of Saint Martin’s hit a jumper with 4.5 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Saints a 62-60 victory over in GNAC women’s basketball action Thursday night at the .
’s jumped out to a four-point lead in overtime thanks to a three-point play by Kassie Ludeman and two free throws by Zack. After trading baskets, came back, as Alysse Carlson () hit a jumper after grabbing an offensive rebound, and then hit two free throws with 30 seconds remaining after pulling down another offensive board.
The Saints called two timeouts during the final possession, with Zack moving into the lane and hitting a 15-footer to increase her game-high point total to 24. With no timeouts left, pushed the ball down the court, but Chelsie Morrison’s (, ) last-second shot hit off the right side of the rim, giving Saint Martin’s its second consecutive close victory at the .
Saint Martin’s held a five-point lead with four minutes remaining in regulation, but was able to force overtime. Taryn Kellogg (, ) started the rally with a three-pointer, followed by Jackie Thomas () converting a three-point play to give the Redhawks a 49-48 lead.
Zack hit a three-pointer with 2:27 remaining to give the Saints a two-point lead, but she fouled Morrison, who hit two free throws to tie the game at 53-53 with two minutes remaining. The defenses took over in the final two minutes of regulation, as Saint Martin’s turned the ball over two times, but missed three shots in the final 1:24 of the second half.
Morrison finished the night with 13 points, while Thomas earned 12 points, three rebounds, four assists, and eight steals. As a team, shot 35.1 percent from the field (20-of-57), including 5-of-15 from the three-point line, and 83.3 percent from the free throw line (15-of-18). The Redhawks earned 17 steals, but committed 19 turnovers during the game.
Besides Zack, who had already notched a double-double in the first half and finished with 24 points and 13 rebounds, Ludeman earned 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field, plus she pulled down eight rebounds and blocked two shots. ’s won the rebounding battle, 45-33, which offset 24 turnovers and 37.3 percent field goal shooting (22-of-59).
This was an important contest not only within the conference, but also within the region, as Saint Martin’s came into the game ranked eighth regionally and was ranked ninth. This had the feel of a game between two similar teams, as there were nine ties and 17 lead changes during the night.
(12-5, 3-5 GNAC) will look to snap its four-game losing streak Saturday night as Western Oregon will come to the for a 7 p.m. contest. The Wolves lost to Montana State Billings, 69-57, Thursday night and will come into Saturday’s game with a 5-12 overall record, including a 1-7 record in GNAC games.