WBK: Augie Falls On Senior Night

No. 23 Augustana (20-6, 16-6 NSIC) squandered a 10-point lead in the second half and fell to Winona State (19-10, 13-9 NSIC) in overtime, 67-64.  Alex Feeney led all scorers with 20 points on the Vikings’ senior night.

Faith Tinklenberg had a hot first half with 14 points and finished with 18 points, but led the Vikings with nine rebounds.  Marieanna Dulas led the Warriors with 14, hitting four three-pointers.

Augustana’s double-digit lead disappeared as the second half waned and the Vikings were tied with the Warriors with 2:01 remaining in the game.   Dulas’ fourth three-pointer capped the Warrior comeback at 53-53.

The Vikings’ ensuing possession featured a pair of chances near the bucket but nothing was able to go in.  Emily Schulte fouled Tessa Wells late in the shot clock, sending her to the line where she hit both giving WSU a 55-53 lead.

Shaunteva Ashley found senior Cami Koehn alone in the corner who buried a three for her first points of the game and the Vikings were on top 56-55 with 35.1 seconds remaining.  Wells responded once again as she drew a foul on Feeney and went to the free throw line with a chance to take the lead.

Wells’ first attempt missed to the right and she converted the next foul shot, tying the game with 12 seconds.  Schulte drove to the basket and her layup attempt rolled off the rim, but Ashley grabbed the rebound and found Koehn in the corner whose three fell short, pushing the game into overtime, tied at 56-56.

Faith Tinklenberg opened the extra period with a second chance layup, but the Warriors hit consecutive three-point shots and led 63-58.  Feeney hit a face-up 10-foot jump shot and Schulte Drew the Vikings within one point after hitting a pair of free throws.

Abby Bush gave the Warriors another three-point cushion by hitting two foul shots and Feeney answered with a couple free throws of her own to pull the Vikings within one, 65-64.  Tinklenberg corralled a missed three-point attempt to give the Vikings 19 seconds for a shot at the lead.

Ashley’s jump shot soared long and Katie Wolff grabbed the miss, forcing Augustana to foul to stop the clock.  Wolff sank both foul shots and Augustana had 2.9 seconds to erase a three-point deficit.  Schulte’s 35-foot heave from the right wing narrowly missed and the Vikings were saddled with a 67-64 loss.

The loss gives Augustana an all-time record of 13-11 in overtime games, but the Vikings secured third place in the south division of the NSCI standings.

Tinklenberg carried the Vikings in the first half, scoring 14 points in the opening period.  The senior guard tallied eight points in the first 6:13 to erase a six-point lead Winona State built in the opening minutes.

Tinklenberg’s second three-pointer tied the game at 10-10.  The next nine minutes featured three tie scores and five lead changes.  The Vikings then closed the half on a 12-6 run capped off by Feeney beating the buzzer off of an offensive rebound from just inside the free throw line.  The Vikings entered the half with a 30-25 lead.

Tinklenberg was 4 for 4 from behind the arc in the first half to lead all scorers in the first stanza.  Augustana shot an even 40 percent from the field while holding the Warriors to just 25 points.  The Vikings forced 10 turnovers, converting those into 10 points.

To open the second half Feeney and Ashley hit a three-pointer each and the Vikings led 38-28 five minutes into the game.  Augustana then traded baskets but the Winona State’s six second-half threes cut into the lead with Dulas’ fourth triple eventually knotted the game.

Augustana will face Minot State in the first round of the NSIC/Sanford Health Women’s Basketball Tournament on Wednesday, Feb. 27 at 6 p.m.

Courtesy: Eric Zahn, Assistant Sports Information Director, Augustana College