Mavericks women’s basketball handles UMC and BSU

Andrew Neururer
Sports Editor

The Minnesota State Mavericks women’s basketball team defeated the Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles and Bemidji State Beavers at home this past weekend and improved their home record to 10-2.

On the season the Mavericks improved to 13-9 and have a conference record of 10-8.

On Feb. 7, the team took on the Golden Eagles and were able to come away victorious with a final score of 89-68. MSU ended the first quarter with a 20-16 advantage, allowing UMC to gain a one-point lead briefly, until freshman Joey Batt was able to score a layup.

Things opened quickly for Minnesota State in the second quarter, as they were able to outscore the Golden Eagles 30-14 and went into the half up 50-30. The Mavericks shot efficiently in the first half, with the bulk of their baskets coming from inside the arc.

In the first half, they shot six attempts from 3, but with the two-point shot working so well, it’s hard to go against what’s working. The team shot 52.3% from the field, shooting 22-for-42.

In the second half, the Mavericks controlled the third quarter once again, outscoring UMC by seven points. It wasn’t until the fourth where the Golden Eagles were able to score more points in a quarter of play.

MSU shot 52.7% from the field by the end of the game and was able to go 30.8% from distance. Minnesota State got a lot of help from their bench in this game, gaining 53 points from those players. As well as doing a good job getting inside the paint and scoring 60 points.

Sophomore Kristi Fett was the team’s leading scorer with 18 points and added five rebounds. Junior Rachel Shumksi went 7-for-8 in the game and added 14 points. Batt was the next Maverick in double figures, shooting 5-of-7 for 11 points.

Minnesota State would defeat the Beavers in Saturday’s match by a score of 84-62. Despite the score being one-sided, the two teams had a close battle in the first half.

MSU had the 15-13 advantage in the first quarter, but Bemidji State was able to control things in the second by outscoring the Mavericks 23-19. Going into the half, the Beavers led 36-34, but Minnesota Sate was able to cut the deficit by two after junior Brooke Tonsfeldt was able to steal the ball and score with time expiring.

The Mavericks turned things around in the third quarter and were able to outscore the Beavers 28-10. After going back and forth for the first few minutes of the third, the Mavericks broke away after Fett was able to get a layup to fall with 6:35 remaining.

For the start of the fourth quarter, MSU led things 62-46 and continued to dominate in the final quarter, outscoring BSU 22-16. Of the Mavericks’ 84 points, 52 of them came inside the paint. MSU also capitalized on turnovers, which allowed them to score 31 points.

Fett was once again the leading scorer with 22 points and seven rebounds. Sophomore Maddy Olson followed her with 20 points. Shumksi was the final Maverick to place in the double figure’s column with 10.

With the Mavericks dominating both games at home this past weekend, head coach Emilee Thiesse credited playing harder through cutting, sealing, rebounding and putting defensive pressure to get the wins, as well as focusing on themselves as a team.

“We want to keep improving our pace and intensity on both ends of the floor.  If we can bring that focused effort each night, things will take care of themselves,” said Thiesse.

The Mavericks will travel to take on Augustana and Wayne State this Friday and Saturday.

Header photo: Minnesota State guard Maddy Olson (10) dribbles the basketball during a game against Bemidji State University at the Taylor Center Saturday, Feb. 8, 2020 in Mankato, Minn. (Mansoor Ahmad/MSU Reporter)