Herald Staff Writer
ST. CLOUD, Minn. -- Without two-time all-North Central Conference pick Christine Williamson, the St. Cloud State Huskies still believed they had a chance to beat No. 2-ranked UND.
After stunning UND 72-67 on Friday night at Halenbeck Hall, the Huskies now believe their season has meaning.
St. Cloud overcame the loss of the high-scoring Williamson and played with confidence and poise for 40 minutes to beat UND in North Central Conference women's basketball for the first time since 1989.
"They wanted it more than we did," UND coach Gene Roebuck said. "They outplayed us in every aspect of the game. They made the right decisions on offense and the right decisions on defense."
St. Cloud coach Lori Ulferts perhaps made the best decision of the game when she sent 6-foot-1 sophomore center Jessica Forsline into the game with seven minutes to play.
Forsline scored seven points in just over a minute, a key spark in St. Cloud State's 15-5 run that wiped out UND's 55-50 lead with 8:43 to play.
Forsline, who finished with 11 points, has two injured shoulders and her playing time is limited. But she made the most of her minutes.
"Jessica could only play a limited amount of minutes,"Ulferts said"But she is a dominant threat on offense. She can score if she gets the ball and they were playing behind her."
Forsline came to the rescue but the play of Tina Schreiner (23 points) kept the Huskies in the game after the Sioux awoke from a first-half funk and threatened to pull away midway through the second half.
"We knew they were going to lob the ball to her,"said UND's Katie Richards, who finished with 16 points."We practiced all week for that."
Forsline's spark and UND's cold shooting against St. Cloud's zone defense in the final minutes helped level the Huskies' NCC record at 3-3. The Sioux dropped to 4-2 and 13-3 overall.
"From start to finish, our defense wasn't where it should have been,"said Richards."They outplayed us and that's the bottom line."
The win was huge for the Huskies, who figured they'd be in the mix for an NCC title this season. But the loss of Williamson, the team's leading scorer and rebounder, left doubt as to which way the Huskies would go.
"This win puts the program back where it should be,"Ulferts said."We were on an emotional high because of Christine's injury and the fact that Jessica wasn't able to play that much."
UND's first-half showing was marred by poor shooting (29 percent) and nine turnovers. UND's shooting woes didn't come from the perimeter, either. The trouble was in the paint, where the Sioux missed 14 close-range shots.
But UND's inspired play produced results to start the second half. Theresa LeCuyer (16 points) and Jenny Boll (11) led the Sioux back from a 29-24 halftime deficit. And Mandy Arndtson's 12 rebounds and 11 points also were a factor.
LeCuyer's coast-to-coast basket with 8:43 to go gave the Sioux a 55-50 lead. It appeared the Sioux were gaining control.
However, Forsline, Schreiner and Jennifer Higgins (13) brought the Huskies back and once again raised consistency questions for the Sioux, who struggled with their shooting (38 percent).
"We're disappointed," LeCuyer said."We felt we were getting some consistency in our last five games. We outplayed and outworked teams for 40 minutes. But we came in here and got outplayed and outworked. It's disappointing."
The post-game meeting between Roebuck and the Sioux was short.
"Well, now we're in second place," Roebuck said.
St. Cloud State 72, UND 67
Key play: St. Cloud State's 15-5 run for 65-60 lead.
Key player: Jessica Forsline, 11 points in 7 minutes.
Key stat: St. Cloud shoots 59 percent in second half.
| UND (67) | |||
| Name | FG | FT | Points |
| Pudenz | 3-10 | 2-2 | 8 |
| Hoffner | 2-7 | 0-0 | 4 |
| Richards | 6-16 | 3-4 | 16 |
| Arndtson | 4-15 | 2-2 | 11 |
| LeCuyer | 8-15 | 0-0 | 16 |
| Boll | 5-8 | 1-2 | 11 |
| Palbicki | 0-2 | 1-2 | 1 |
| Totals | 28-73 | 9-12 | 67 |
| St. Cloud State (72) | |||
| Brand | 5-8 | 0-0 | 10 |
| Schreiner | 9-15 | 4-5 | 23 |
| Abrahams | 2-5 | 0-0 | 5 |
| Persby | 2-9 | 1-4 | 5 |
| Higgins | 4-11 | 3-3 | 13 |
| Peterson | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0 |
| Autio | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 |
| Forsline | 4-5 | 3-3 | 11 |
| Streed | 2-5 | 1-1 | 5 |
| Totals | 28-61 | 12-16 | 72 |
Halftime: SC 29, UND 24.
3-point goals: UND 2-20 (Hoffner 0-4, Richards 1-7, Pudenz 0-5, Arndtson 1-4), SC 4-7 (Schreiner 1-1, Abrahams 1-1, Persby 0-1, Higgins 2-2, Streed 0-2).
Fouled out: none.
Rebounds: UND 41 (Arndtson 12), SC 41 (Schreiner 14).
Assists: UND 15 (Richards 4), SC 21 (Persby 10).
Total fouls: UND 20, SC 14.