Women’s basketball rides winning streak
Minnesota State’s women’s basketball team has swept its competition through their first three games, as they are looking sharp to begin the season.
The Maverick women’s basketball team came out of the gates firing at all cylinders. They have been clicking, but head coach Emilee Thiesse isn’t trying to get caught up in all the talk and noise of being undefeated. Last season didn’t quite start, or finish, the way Minnesota State would have wanted.
“Surprised with the early success, but not trying to get caught up in their record,” Thiesse said.
It is only three games in, but it is nice to see the Mavericks win their first three games of the season; two of which came from the same teams to begin the season just a year before.
Minnesota State’s first game of the 2016 season was against Missouri Western State. The Mavericks started out a little slow, putting up only 14 points to the Griffins’ 15 at the end of the first quarter. However, by the end of the half Minnesota State had taken the lead at 29-26 and never looked back, putting up 18 points in each quarter and limiting Missouri Western to only 13 and 15 points in their respected quarters.
Leading the way for the Mavericks was Mankato-native Claire Ziegler with her first double-double if the season. The junior forward finished with 14 points on 50 percent shooting from the floor. She also came down with 11 rebounds in 29 minutes of action. Two other players were also able put up double-digit points in the matchup. Senior forward Karina Schroeder finished with 12 points, making four of six shots. The senior also brought down 9 rebounds, just one away from reaching the double-double mark as well. Senior guard Britney Scherber was only two for nine from the field, but managed to hit five of six at the free-throw line, giving her 10 points to finish the night.
The final score was 65-54 Mavericks, clinching their first win of the season.
Game number two also took place at the Taylor Center and Minnesota State dominated on the floor. After the first half, the Mavericks had scored 49 points on 50 percent shooting from the field and had a 49-34 lead going into the second half.
Leading the way for Minnesota State in the first half was senior guard Sammie Delzotto with 13 points on five-for-six shooting. Delzotto would end up leading the team with 20 points on the night, shooting lights out from the field making eight of her 11 attempted shots. Ziegler finished with a double-double once again, scoring 15 points on five of nine shooting and pulled down 12 rebounds to help the Mavericks win.
The Mavericks had four players in this game score double-digit points. Scherber scored 14 points and was a perfect five-for-five from the charity stripe. Scoring 10 points and coming off the bench was freshman guard Taylor Klug. By the end of the game, Minnesota State had finished with 89 points and held Missouri Southern State to just 64 points.
Game three was a tight one for the Mavericks on the road that finished with a 71-67 score. The third quarter surge was what propelled Minnesota State to their third victory. Delzotto lead the team once again with 19 points at the end of the game, and Scherber tallied 13 points. Thiesse attributes the early success the Mavericks have seen to the depth of the roster and the leadership of the team.
“We wouldn’t have been able to take the steps we have this season without our great leadership,” Thiesse said.
Minnesota State’s next game is on the road against Wayne State in Wayne, Nebraska and will finish up their three-game road trip in Sioux Falls, South Dakota to play the Augustana Vikings. Their next home game will be on December 9 at 6 p.m. against Winona State. Wayne State is 5-1 overall on the season, and 0-1 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). They lost to Augustana on November 21 by six points in Sioux Falls. The Vikings of Augustana are currently 6-2 overall and 1-0 in the NSIC. After starting the season 1-2, the Vikings have won five-straight games.