Mustang
comeback bid comes up short at St. Francis
Posted
11/9/07 11:31 PM
Jessie Dirks |
Emily Duffy |
JOLIET, Ill.
-- The Mount Mercy College women's basketball team fought back
from a double-digit deficit again on Friday, but this time the
Mustangs couldn't get the win, falling to the University of St.
Francis (Ill.), 91-83, in overtime.
In its last
outing, Mount Mercy (1-2) came from 15 points down to defeat Missouri
Valley College last weekend at the Grand View College Classic.
Tonight, the Mustangs never led in regulation and trailed the
Lady Saints (3-0) by 21 in the second half before a furious rally
sent the game into overtime.
St. Francis
led by as many as 12 points in the first half and took a 35-27
lead into intermission. After junior guard Jessie Dirks started
the second period with a 3-pointer, the Saints scored the next
12 points to go up 47-30 with just under 16 minutes to go. They
pushed that lead to 21, 60-39, near the 12-minute mark before
Mount Mercy started its comeback.
The Mustangs
chipped away at the lead and cut the deficit to single digits
when Dirks hit another trey to make it 66-58 with 5:06 on the
clock. After St. Francis answered with a triple, Mount Mercy went
on a 12-2 run to get within one, 71-70, on a pair of Emily Duffy
free throws with 2:38 left. Back-to-back buckets by the Lady Saints
quickly pushed their lead back to five, 75-70, with 1:42 remaining.
Moments later,
however, a steal and layup by junior guard Kelli Dabroski and
a 3-pointer by Dirks knotted the score at 75-75 with 22 seconds
left in regulation. Mount Mercy couldn't capitalize on a St. Francis
turnover with four seconds to go and the game went into overtime.
The Mustangs
led for the first time all night, 77-75, when Dabroski knocked
down two free throws on their first possession of overtime, but
it was all St. Francis from there. Seven straight points by the
Lady Saints had Mount Mercy in an 82-77 hole with 3:18 remaining
and the Mustangs couldn't get closer than four the rest of the
way.
Dirks scored
21 of her game-high 29 points in the second half and overtime
for Mount Mercy. She also finished with seven 3-pointers, the
second-highest single-game total in school history, and collected
five assists and six of the team's 19 steals. Duffy, a junior
guard, added 19 points, four rebounds, and four steals.
Senior forward
Chelsie Patik totaled 14 points and nine boards, Dabroski 11 points
and six assists. Senior forward Addie McCreedy also grabbed nine
rebounds to share game-high honors with Patik. Freshman forward
Emilie Warren tallied a career-high five points and seven boards
off the bench.
Amanda Mistretta's
20 points led four Lady Saints in double figures. Jacqie Storm
chipped in 19 points, seven rebounds, and five steals, while Kristina
Yedinak contributed 18 points, eight boards, six assists, and
five steals. Anna Sears scored 10 points in 16 minutes for St.
Francis.
The Mustangs
will be in action on Thursday, traveling to Upper Iowa University
for a 7:00 p.m. contest in Fayette, Iowa. After that, Mount Mercy's
month-long road trip continues at Culver-Stockton College (Mo.)
on Monday, Nov. 19. The Mustangs and Wildcats square off at 7:00
p.m. in Canton, Mo.
