No. 7 Women’s Basketball Plucks Falcons for CIT Title

by Jacy Johnston

The No. 7 Concordia Nebraska women’s basketball team are once again CIT Champions after a 75-53 victory over the Concordia Wisconsin Falcons on Saturday, Jan. 30 in Chicago.

“We obviously like to take a lot of pride in winning this event and we want to have pride in our school and bring back that trophy and that is always a goal every year, and to accomplish that goal is a great feeling,” said coach Drew Olson. “I am even more proud of the growth we have had over the last two games.”

The Bulldogs jumped to a 5-0 lead, but the Falcons did not allow the lead to grow any bigger. At the end of the first quarter, Concordia Nebraska led 18-13. In the second quarter, the Falcons gained momentum to go on a 12-2 run and gain a 26-23 lead over the Bulldogs. With under four minutes until halftime, the Bulldogs regrouped with a timeout and responded with a scoring spurt of their own. At the half, the Bulldogs regained a 29-28 advantage over the Falcons.

The third quarter started with offense from freshman Quinn Wragge and sophomore Brenleigh Daum. With less than four minutes until the end of the third quarter, the scoreboard still gave Concordia Nebraska a one-point advantage, 41-40. The Bulldogs turned up the intensity, and junior Laurel Krohn nailed a 3-pointer to create an 8-0 scoring run for the Bulldogs. Concordia Nebraska tallied a 52-43 lead with one quarter left to play.

Senior Becky Mueller stepped up her play in the fourth quarter, dominating the Falcon defense and contributing 10 points in the final 10 minutes. The momentum continued on both ends of the quarter, and the lead continued to grow in favor of the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs ended with an easy victory from outscoring the Falcons 23-10 in the final quarter.

Wragge led the Bulldogs netting 20 points. Mueller scored 15 points, and Daum finished with 13 points.

The Bulldogs will continue the season with a busy three-game week. On Tuesday, Feb. 2 Concordia will play Grace University in Walz Arena before traveling to Nebraska Wesleyan on Wednesday and Morningside on Saturday.