Women's Basketball
Lady Pilots Dominate Saint Francis To Win MCC Crown
Game Summary
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…
The weather outside was frightful Saturday afternoon, but for the Lady Pilots, the basketball was so delightful, as they jumped out to a 25 point lead by the half and cruised to an 81-69 victory over host University of St. Francis. The avalanche of a first half came on a day when NAIA No. 13 Bethel needed it most. The win brought the Lady Pilots their second consecutive Mid Central College Conference regular season championship and No. 1 seed in the upcoming conference tournament.
All season long, the Lady Pilots have had different players step up and on this occasion it was sophomore forward Bekah Basinger, who canned 4 of 6 three pointers and scored 16 points in the opening half as Bethel led at the intermission 48-23. Bethel lit the lamp for 55% from the floor in the opening half on 17 for 31 shooting, including 7 for 15 from the three point line. The Lady Pilots also forced the Lady Cougars of St. Francis into 16 first half turnovers and out-rebounded the hosts 16-11.
The beginning of the second half looked like Bethel would run away and hide as they raced out to a 35 point lead, 63-28 at the 15:07 mark, but USF would claw their way back to respectability as the shooting touch of Bethel cooled considerably in the final 12 minutes of the game. However, the game was never in doubt as Bethel’s lead stayed between 12 and 20 points the rest of the game.
Basinger, who has suffered thru a season of injuries and illness, was brilliant finishing the game with a game and career high 30 points to go along with her team leading 10 rebounds. Amber Peters was equally impressive as she added 16 points and 9 rebounds, while sophomore Heather Seyfred canned four three pointers of her own and added 20 respectively. With her nine rebounds today, Amber Peters broke the Lady Pilots single season rebounding record of 324 rebounds in the 94-95 season by Melinda Striegel. The 5'6" Peters now has 330 total rebounds and is fifth in the nation overall.
In some respects, the MCC coaches’ preseason poll was right as this game pitted the preseason No.1 team and the team picked to finish fifth. However, the tables were reversed as it was Bethel, not the early favorite USF, who claimed the Mid Central Conference Championship, behind their 8th straight MCC win.
“This has been an unbelievable season,” said Bethel Coach Jody Martinez. “We have had our ups and downs, but to go thru the second half of the MCC schedule at 8-0 is truly remarkable. I have to give credit to my staff and these players for their work ethic to be the best. I was really excited for Bekah today to end the regular season on such a strong note, especially considering all of her injuries. It’s exciting to know that we are the number one seed and will be playing at home in the post season tournament.”
The Lady Pilots improve their overall record to 21-7 and finish the Mid Central College Conference regular season with a record of 13-3. The back-to-back conference champs will next play Tuesday, February 24th vs. the winner of Grace and Goshen who will battle in a play-in game on Monday night.
