FREMONT, Neb. – Midland University took court inside the Wikert Event Center on a Wednesday night in a matchup against Hastings College. The teams were neck-and-neck through most of the game, but the Broncos were able to pull away fourth quarter, winning 61-48. The Warriors’ record drops to 2-8 overall while they remain winless in the Great Athletic Plains Conference (GPAC) at 0-6. Hastings improves to 6-4 overall and 4-2 in the GPAC.
The Warriors were first to put points on the board with a layup by Sarah Shepard. The Broncos quickly responded to tie the game early on. After a constant battle of back-and-forth baskets between the teams, Midland was able to string together a couple of baskets in a row to lead by four points at the end of the quarter.
As the Broncos added pressure, scoring a three-pointer to start the second, the Warriors were eager to fire back, going on a run to take a seven-point lead with 2:41 to go in the half. Hastings turned up the heat, converting on a pair of three-pointers and making a free throw to even the score at 29-29 at the break.
After intermission, Midland went on a 5-0 run to start the third. Rubie Klausen. Had a jumper while Sarah Shepard drilled a three-pointer to make it 34-29. Scoring was at a premium for both sides down the stretch with Hastings making three field goals and Midland making two in the final eight minutes of the quarter. The Warriors clung to a three-point lead, 39-36, heading into the final ten minutes.
Both teams started the fourth, battling it out on the court, matching each other basket for basket. Three straight three-pointers by the Broncos game a 48-45 lead and their defense kept the Warriors from making a field goal in the final seven-plus minutes. Hastings outscored Midland 13-3 to secure the conference win, 61-48.
Leading the Warriors in scoring was Sarah Shepard with 11. She was followed by Kennedy Darner and Gabby Beauperthuy with eight each. Rubie Klausen tallied seven points to go with seven rebounds. Beauperthuy also pulled down seven boards off of the bench.
For the game, Midland shot 18-of-53 (34%), while Hastings had a slight edge, shooting 19-for-54 (35.2%). The Warriors won the battle on the glass, outrebounding the Broncos 40 to 30. One of the telling stats of the night was a 17 to 7 advantage on points-off-turnovers by Hastings.
“I’ll give credit to our kids. We executed our defensive game plan pretty well for three quarters,” said head coach Shawn Gilbert postgame. “We had to make some changes to our lineup and I thought the players that stepped in, played well. We had our chances in the third quarter, but each team struggled on the offensive end. We stopped executing and making plays. A few too many turnovers tonight. We’ve got to find ways to stay disciplined late in games and at the end of halves. We’ll work on those situations and get better with hard work in practice.”
Midland (2-8, 0-6 GPAC) will be back in action on Saturday afternoon with a road game at Briar Cliff. (7-3, 4-2 GPAC) Tipoff is set for 2:00 p.m. in Sioux City, Iowa at the Newman Flanagan Center.
