BEMIDJI, Minn. – After scoring just 25 points through the first 20 minutes, the Bemidji State University Women's Basketball team scored 25 points alone in the fourth quarter on their way to erasing a 15-point deficit and defeating Concordia-St. Paul 70-67 on Friday night in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play inside a rocking BSU Gym.
It was certainly a tale of two halves. BSU (5-10, 2-9 NSIC) tallied 11 points in the first quarter and added 14 more in the second quarter to trail 39-25 at halftime. The deficit at one point reached 15 at 31-16 with 5:54 to play in the opening half.
CSP (7-8, 4-7 NSIC) saw the Beavers make a push before the break getting as close as eight, before the Golden Bears went on a 6-0 run over the final three minutes to take the 39-25 halftime lead.
Everything changed out of the locker rooms, as the Beavers were hitting shots and the defense stifled CSP. BSU limited the Golden Bears to just 28 points over the final 20 minutes. After the teams traded baskets over the first couple of minutes, a jumper by Alyssa Hill ignited a quick 6-0 run. It was a big night for Hill who went for 21 points and seven rebounds, with 17 of those points coming in the second half. Following the Hill jumper, Sam Pogatchnik and Trinity Yoder each added layups to trim the deficit to eight. Pogatchnik just missed another double-double with 11 points and eight rebounds. Yoder went for a game-high 22 points. CSP stopped the run just momentarily with a layup before a triple by Pogatchnik sent the Beavers on a 7-0 run. Hill took over from there capping the run with a pair of layups to leave CSP holding the slight 43-40 lead with 1:37 to play in the third.
The Golden Bears held the small three-point edge until early in the fourth quarter when Isabel Majewski released a quick three to tie the game at 50. Yoder put BSU back in front off a steal and transition layup on the next possession. It was the first lead for the Beavers since it was 2-0 just 46 seconds into the contest.
It was a battle over the next few minutes with the team's trading leads until Amme Sheforgen put together a quick 5-0 run that left BSU with the 59-55 lead near the midway point of the quarter. Sheforgen hit on a layup and then added a long ball all within the span of 37 seconds.
CSP refused to go away, answering with the next three points to leave BSU holding on to the 59-58 advantage at the 4:13 mark. Following a solid defensive stand, the Beavers pushed the lead back to three on a pair of Hill free throws. The Golden Bears again came back to regain the lead off a pair of layups for the 62-61 advantage with 2:46 to play.
Big shots continued for both teams with Sheforgen getting past her defender for the open layup to push BSU back in front by one. CSP, who had hit on just two three-pointers all night, came up with a big time for their third as Jalyn Shaw connected from the corner with under two to play and move the Golden Bears back in front by two.
Pogatchnik then cut hard to the basket and Yoder was there with the perfect pass leading Pogatchnik to the layup and she was also fouled. After converting the free throw, BSU pushed back in front by one at 66-65 with 1:39 to play.
CSP turned to Megan Gamble on the next possession, and she was able to navigate the paint hitting a layup with 1:28 to play to move back ahead by one.
Out of a timeout, BSU turned to Yoder. Yoder worked her way inside the paint and took a difficult turn-around jumper as the shot clock was ticking down swishing the shot to move BSU ahead for good at 68-67.
The Golden Bears tried to go back in front with a layup, but a tough stand by the Beavers denied the chance. After a turnover moved the ball back to CSP, the Beaver defense again stood tall getting a missed layup that Pogatchnik pulled down for a big rebound with seven seconds to play. With still a foul to give, CSP was forced to foul Pogatchnik and then had to foul Yoder sending her to the line with three seconds to play. The fifth-year guard calmly sunk both free throws to push the lead to three. Without a timeout, CSP was forced to try a three-quarter court shot that fell way short and sent Bemidji State to the thrilling 70-67 victory.
Yoder went 9-21 from the field on her way to a game-high 22 points. She also added four rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a steal in 38 minutes. Hill went 9-15 from the field for her 21 points, along with seven rebounds in 30 minutes. Pogatchnik played 37 minutes, connecting on 4-8 from the field for her 11 points. In addition to her eight rebounds, she also dished out four assists and sent back two shots. Off the bench, Majewski and Sheforgen came up large with seven points apiece. Bemidji State went 28-58 (48.3) from the field, 5-16 (31.3) from three and 9-11 (81.8) at the foul line.
Gamble led Concordia-St. Paul with 14 points and seven rebounds, as the Golden Bears had four players reach double-figures in scoring. Ally Gietzel was close to a double-double with seven points and 11 rebounds. CSP went 28-66 (42.4) from the field, 3-14 (21.4) from three and 8-11 (72.7) at the foul line.
It was the first win for BSU overcoming a deficit of 15 points since the 2017 season when the Beavers came back to defeat St. Cloud State (52-51). BSU has now won three of the last four games between the teams and four of the last six meetings. The Beavers improve to 4-3 at home and have won two-straight inside BSU Gym having closed 2022 with the 71-58 New Year's Eve win against Minot State.
BSU will remain at home tomorrow (Saturday) when they will face No. 11 Minnesota State with tipoff set for 3:30 p.m. The Mavericks picked up the 85-50 road win at Minnesota Crookston on Friday night.
For more information on the Bemidji State women's basketball program, follow the Beavers on Twitter (@BSUBeavers), like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers) or sign up for the TXTUpdates from BSUBeavers.com text-messaging system through the "Multimedia" pull down menu on the main page of BSUBeavers.com.
Located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, Bemidji State University sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men's hockey membership in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and women's hockey membership in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).
