The Cobbers held the Knights without a point for 14 minutes, 4 seconds and without a field goal for 16:30 in the first half. Concordia’s stingy defense led to a 73-57 triumph in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference women’s basketball at Concordia’s Memorial Auditorium.
Concordia improved to 4-2 overall and 2-1 in the MIAC with the victory, while Carleton fell to 2-4 and 0-3.
"I thought our defense was good," said Concordia coach Kathy Wall of her team’s first-half performance. "We didn’t hardly give them any good looks at the basket."
While Carleton was struggling with its offense, Concordia racked up 28 straight points. A Brandi Myers layup with 6:10 left in the first half staked the Cobbers to a 28-2 advantage.
Balance highlighted Concordia’s big surge as eight different players scored. Sara Kragerud started the spree, nailing a 15-foot jumper 3:02 into the game. Kragerud’s bucket tied the game 2-2 and erased the Knights’ only lead of the game.
"I thought we came out and jumped on them right away," Wall said. "That’s what we talked about. In our first two games (in the conference), slow starts killed us."
Concordia limited Carleton to 20 percent (4 of 20) shooting from the field in the first half. Myers scored a putback with 2 seconds left in the half, building a 39-11 advantage after 20 minutes.
The strong first-half showing allowed the Cobbers to cruise in the second half. The final 16-point margin was as close as Carleton would get.
Wall, however, said she would have liked to see her team play with more urgency in the last 20 minutes.
"I was a little disappointed we didn’t put them away in the second half," Wall said. "It was a great lesson we learned and we learned while still winning. And that’s what matters most."
Nichole Walla spearheaded the Concordia attack, scoring a game-high 14 points and grabbing 11 rebounds off the bench. The 6-foot-2 junior was too much for Carleton to handle inside the paint.
"I thought I did a pretty decent job on the boards," Walla said. "I don’t consider that one of my strengths so it’s something I needed to work on."
Wall said Walla needs to be a dominant player every night if Concordia is going to continue to improve.
"She needed to have a good game and step up and she did," Wall said. "But we expect that from her. That’s how she has to play every game."
CARLETON (2-4): Lasher 0-3 1-2 1, Mueller 0-2 0-0 0, Spoon 4-8 2-2 10, Peterson 6-13 0-0 12, Gillmor 1-3 1-2 3, Exel 2-2 0-1 4, Cawley 0-3 2-2 2, Anderson 5-9 3-5 13, Seegers 4-8 4-4 12. Totals 22-51 13-18 57.
CONCORDIA (4-2): Kragerud 2-4 0-0 4, Cropp 1-1 0-0 2, Tank 3-4 0-0 6, Myers 3-7 1-2 7, Vetter 1-2 5-8 7, Jacobson 1-5 0-0 3, Schwichtenberg 2-5 0-0 6, Backer 1-4 0-0 2, Moen 0-1 0-1 0, Karli 2-8 0-0 4, Spears 2-5 3-4 7, Walla 6-11 2-2 14, Sonstelie 4-14 1-1 9. Totals 28-71 12-18 73.
Halftime: Concordia 39, Carleton 11. 3-point goals: Carleton 0-5 (Lasher 0-2, Mueller 0-1 Gillmor 0-1 Cawley 0-1), Concordia 3-6 (Myers 0-1 Vetter 0-1 Jacobson 1-1 Schwichtenberg 2-3). Rebounds: Carleton 35 (Spoon 8, Anderson 8), Concordia 42 (Walla 11). Steals: Carleton 4 (Gillmor 2), Concordia 13 (Vetter 4). Assists: Carleton 9 (Spoon 2, Cawley 2, Anderson 2), Concordia 17 (Jacobson 4). Total fouls: Carleton 17, Concordia 20. Turnovers: Carleton 18, Concordia 8.