MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - After facing its first deficit of the season Saturday at Augsburg, No. 10 Gustavus women's basketball created separation late in the first quarter and continued to add to its lead in a decisive 74-48 victory. The Gusties improve to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the MIAC, while the Auggies drop to 1-4 overall and 0-3 in the league.
"It's our first road win in the conference and I'm proud of how the team responded after a slow start," Head Coach
Laurie Kelly said. "Sometimes you have to win ugly but we'll take a win any way we can get it."
Augsburg scored seven consecutive points early in the first quarter for a 7-4 advantage and the lead changed hands seven more times in the next five minutes. A driving layup by
Kylie Baranick with 3:28 left in the first gave the Gusties a 16-15 lead and they never looked back. Gustavus closed out the first on an 11-2 run for a 25-17 lead after 10 minutes.
The Gustie defense held the Auggies without a basket until the 6:35 mark of the second quarter with a 10-point lead. Augsburg hit a buzzer-beater three at the end of the half and the Gusties went into the locker room with a 40-28 advantage. The Gusties dominated the boards in the first half, out-rebounding the Auggies 25-6.
Gustavus blew the flood gates wide open in the third quarter, outscoring the Auggies 28-8 for its largest lead at 68-36. The Gusties were able to clear the bench in the fourth quarter, playing a total of 10 bench players.
"We came out much better after the half," Kelly said. "We buckled down defensively and that got us going on offense. Rachel was big for us in the third quarter."
Rachel Kawiecki, who scored nine points in the third quarter, led the offense with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting.
Syd Hauger added 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting and
Morgan Kelly contributed 10 points on 5-of-8 shooting. The Gusties shot 49.2 percent from the floor and held the Auggies to 30.9 percent.
Gustavus travels to St. Scholastica on Monday night.
