(Ave Maria, FL) – Concordia women's basketball completed their road trip with a match at Ave Maria on Tuesday afternoon. The game featured excitement with multiple lead changes and overtime with the Cardinals battling hard to the end. However, the Gyrenes held on at the end for a 73-70 win.
Samantha Dorn led the team with 20 points. Izzy Hadley, Julia Hirt and Taylor Leatherman tied for second with 11 points apiece. Hadley and Hirt tied for a team-high 7 rebounds.
Samantha Dorn opened scoring with a layup. Taylor Leatherman made a jumper and Dorn added a triple. The lead continued to shift with Emily McCalla converting an "and-1" and Samantha Dorn draining two free throws. Zaria Mitchner drove for a basket and Izzy Viau hit a 3-pointer. Izzy Hadley made two free throws for a 19-13 lead, but the Gyrenes tied the game 19-19 at the end of the 1st.
Samantha Dorn hit a mid-range jumper early in the 2nd. Julia Hirt and Zaria Mitchner drove for layups as the contest remained close. Hirt knocked down another triple and defense took over with both teams scoring only 9 points in the frame. The game was tied 28-28 at halftime.
Samantha Dorn drove for a basket to start the 3rd quarter. Taylor Leatherman hit a 3-pointer and Izzy Viau converted a layup. A 10-0 run put Ave Maria ahead 43-35, but the Cardinals responded when Izzy Hadley drained a high-arcing triple. Samantha Dorn drained two free throws and completed an "and-1" while Taylor Leatherman made two baskets. A layup from Izzy Hadley and a buzzer-beating drive from Dorn put CUAA ahead 51-50.
Izzy Viau knocked down a triple early in the 4th. Asaria Turman and Samantha Dorn made free throws and Concordia held a 61-59 lead with 2:48 to play. The Cardinals pulled off 4 offensive rebounds in a row on their next possession, but the Gyrenes' defense held and forced overtime with a late layup.
Ave Maria started overtime on a 5-0 run, but Julia Hirt cut into the lead with a triple. Trailing 72-64 with 24 seconds left, the Cardinals mounted a comeback effort with unanswered 3-pointers from Julia Hirt and Izzy Hadley. After the Gyrenes only made one free throw on the ensuing 1-and-1, a potential game-tying triple from Hirt barely rimmed out.
Concordia will play next on January 4 when they host Aquinas at 5:30pm.
