SIOUX CITY, Iowa – After a strong first quarter, Midland University’s women’s basketball team was overtaken by Briar Cliff University on Saturday afternoon as they fell by a score of 75-53.
The Warriors came out aggressively and scored the first five points of the game behind the play of Emma Shepard who had 8 of the team’s 17 first-quarter points. Shepard, has been a key contributor as of late, with several other bench producers out with injuries. Midland held a 17-13 lead after 10 minutes of action.
In the second quarter, the Chargers were able to force the Warriors into turnovers that enabled them to go on an 8-0 run to start the quarter. Midland responded but that was not enough to keep the game close. BCU outscored Midland in the quarter 27-11 and headed into halftime with a 40-28 lead.
During the third quarter, every shot the Warriors made was matched by BCU. The Chargers would build upon their lead, growing it to as many as 19 in the quarter. Midland closed out the quarter with a steal by Katy Gathje followed by Lexi Kraft hitting a three. The Chargers held a 56-40 lead heading into the final quarter inside the Newman Flanigan Center.
With back-to-back shots made by Gathje, Midland was able to cut the deficit to 15 with 7:26 left. Briar Cliff would go on an 8-1 run though to put the game out of reach, cruising to an 18-point win.
Shepard scored a career-high with 21 points. The only other player reaching double-digits in scoring for Midland was Kraft with 12 points.
Midland (12-7, 9-7 GPAC) will have a full week to prepare for their next opponent. They’ll take on No. 11 Morningside (15-2, 13-1 GPAC) next weekend back in Sioux City. Tipoff is set for 2:00 p.m. inside George M. Allee Gymnasium on Saturday, January 23. This will be the second meeting of the year between the teams. The Mustangs won the first meeting 84-77 back on December 5, 2020.
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