ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Gustavus women's basketball team overcame a 15-point deficit against Hamline on Wednesday night in their MIAC opener to win 53-50 in a game that contained 13 lead changes and seven ties. The win is the Gusties' sixth straight MIAC opening night win, dating back to the 2018-19 season.
In the first quarter, the Gusties started down 5-0, courtesy of two field goals and a free throw from the Pipers, but responded with a five point run themselves, via an
Ava Westerman (Jr., Pewaukee, Wis.) three-pointer and an
Ella Peters (Jr., River Falls, Wis.) field goal. Peters continued with the next two points as well, two free throws on the next trip down the floor for the first lead of the game, 7-6. Gustavus took their largest lead of the quarter and first half up 14-11, which was short-lived as a Hamline three tied the game back up. The first quarter ended 16-14 in favor of the Gusties, thanks to a
Bella Sutch (So., Blaine, Minn.) layup. The Gusties shot 40% from the floor in the first quarter and 50% from three-point land in a quarter where the lead changed five times.
The second quarter did not bode well for Gustavus, who scored two baskets in the first 1:18, but then went scoreless for the next 6:03 of game time, where the Pipers went on an 11-0 run. The Gusties shot 3-8 (37.5%) from the floor, but turned the ball over nine times. Hamline shot 7-11 (63.6%) and held a 23-6 advantage in the second quarter to take the lead 37-22 at halftime.
After some words at halftime from head coach
Laurie Kelly, the Gusties came right back and erased the deficit, coming out of the locker room on a 14-2 run. Five different Gusties scored on the run, with five from
Peyton Stevermer (Jr., Mankato, Minn.) to lead the charge. Stevermer scored five of the first six points in the quarter, setting the tone for Gustavus in the second half. The Gusties held Hamline to four points total in the quarter and a 2-for-12 (16.7) clip and dominated on the glass, holding a 13-5 rebound advantage to propel themselves back into the game.
The final frame was the second consecutive where Gustavus held Hamline to under 10 points, continuing to chip away at the halftime deficit. The first 3:36 did not bring any scoring for either team, but the Gusties found their stride from there, going on a 7-2 run to retake the lead 46-43 with just under five minutes to play in the game. Peter hit a jumper with 2:30 left in the quarter to extend the lead to 48-45 when Camille Cummings of the Pipers came down and hit a three pointer nine seconds later to silence the Gustie road contingent and tie the game back up with 2:21 to go. After trading free throws, the game stayed tied until 38 seconds left in the contest. After being double teamed in the paint,
Whitley Ronn (Jr., Lakeville, Minn.) kicked a pass out to the left side behind the arc where Peters hit a three-point dagger in what would prove to be the last basket of the game, giving the Gusties the win 53-50.
Gustavus overcame a night shooting 5-for-21 (23.8%) from three-point land and 19-for-51 (37.3%) from the field to defeat the Pipers, who shot 3-for-19 (15.8%) and 16-for-43 (37.2%) respectively. The game contained 13 lead changes and seven ties, and the Gusties snatched the game out of the Pipers' mouth, only leading for 10:27 of the 40-minute contest. Gustavus also scored 26 points off the bench, mostly from
Bella DeHaan (So., Lakeville, Minn.), who contributed 10 from the bench, her first double-digit performance of the season and career.
Individually, Peters led the team with 13 points and added eight rebounds and
Anna Goodman (So., Lakeville, Minn.) led with three steals to pace the Gusties.
Gustavus women's basketball is back in action on Saturday, December 6th when they travel down to Winona to face Saint Mary's.
