Central Women’s Basketball Comeback Spoiled in Opener
The promise displayed by a high-energy comeback was undone by cold shooting down the stretch as the Central College women’s basketball team saw its season opener spoiled 76-74 at Waldorf College Tuesday.
Down by as many as 14 points in the first half and 42-33 at halftime, first-year coach Moran Lonning’s squad used a relentless full-court press to tie the game at 46-46 with 5:57 left using a 13-4 run. Central surged to a 74-70 lead with 2:00 remaining, only to go scoreless the rest of the way. The Dutch were 0-3 from the field and misfired on a pair of free throws in that span as a Sandra Christian lay-in with 3 seconds remaining gave Waldorf the winning margin.
Central (0-1) shot 55.6% from the field during that third-quarter comeback but a chilly 32.1% for the game, including 20% from 3-point range on 6-of-30 shooting. The Dutch were also hurt at the foul line, hitting 55.2% (16-29) while Waldorf (2-3) connected on 72.0% (18-25). The Warriors shot 42.6% from the field.
Senior guard Kelsea Hurley (Scottsdale, Ariz., Desert Mountain HS) and sophomore transfer guard Samantha Scott (Davenport, North Scott HS) each scored 16 points. Hurley also had nine rebounds, three assists and a block without committing a turnover. Scott had six boards.
Point guard Hannah Dau (sophomore, Paullina, South O’Brien HS) added 10 points while transfer guard Abby Johnson (sophomore, Ankeny) and guard Kassidi Steel (junior, New Sharon, North Mahaska HS) were each credited with three steals. Freshman point guard Jasmyn Williams (Denver, Colo., Arvada West HS), also had seven points and three rebounds.
The Dutch, playing without injured all-conference center Allison Van Gorp (sophomore, Pella, Pella Christian HS) were outrebounded 43-31 but forced 20 Waldorf turnovers, coming up with 12 steals.
Central makes its home-season debut Thursday against North Central University (Minn.) at 6 p.m. at P.H. Kuyper Gymnasium. It’s the season opener for the Rams, who are coming off an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference championship, posting a 24-5 overall record and making a trip to the NCAA Division III tournament.
Second-Half Spree Pushes Waldorf Past Central Men’s Basketball Team
Some unusual struggles at the free throw line spoiled the Central College men’s basketball team’s bid for an opening-night road win Tuesday night.
A 12-0 second-half Waldorf College run, fueled by four 3-point buckets in five tries, turned the game around as Central tumbled 58-53 after leading much of the way. The Dutch raised their degree of difficulty by knocking down just 3-of-16 free throws (18.8%).
Central bolted to a 23-10 lead at the 11:43 mark of the first half but saw the gap trimmed to 31-26 at the break. The Dutch pushed the advantage back to 47-40 on a 3-point bucket by guard Kade Terrell (5th-year, Montrose, Colo.) with 9:43 remaining in the game. But Waldorf (3-1) made its run for a 52-47 lead with 3:45 left. Central missed seven shots and five free throws in that stretch. A Grant Johnson (senior, Van Meter) layup with 41 seconds left pulled Central within 54-43 but the Dutch came up empty after that.
Center Joshua Van Gorp (junior, Pella, Pella Christian HS) had 15 points and six rebounds while Johnson had nine points with five blocked shots and three boards. Terrell had eight points with five rebounds and four assists. Waldorf barely outshot Central from the field 40.0% to 39.3% but the Dutch held a 29-27 advantage on the boards.
Central travels to Superior, Wisconsin for the Merrill Thompson Classic this weekend, taking on host Wisconsin-Superior Friday at 7:30 p.m. The Yellowjackets are coming off a 10-16 season and opened the year with a 73-57 home-court win over the College of St. Scholastica (Minn.) Tuesday.