Courtesy of Midland Athletics
FREMONT, Neb. – With the season starting to wind down, Midland University hosted longtime conference rival Hastings College on Wednesday night inside the Wikert Event Center. Playing for the second time this season in Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) action, the visiting Broncos prevailed, 81-69, to complete the season sweep for the second straight year.
Hastings started hot in the opening quarter, hitting five of its first nine shots. Three of the made field goals were from long distance as they built a 14-6 run in the first four minutes. The Warriors battled back, playing mostly even the rest of the way as the teams traded baskets. A quick 6-2 run to end the first allowed Hastings to double-up Midland on the scoreboard, leading 24-12. In the opening period, the Broncos were 5-for-10 from behind the arc.
In the second, the Warriors attempted to chip away at the deficit. Baskets by Asia Bryant and Aryannah Harrison as the start pulled them within eight, but the long ball continued for Hastings. Every time the Midland tried to seize the momentum, Hastings would have an answer. The lead hovered around the 10-point mark most of the quarter and ended at 13 at the break, 39-26.
Coming out of the halftime intermission, the Warriors and Broncos traded baskets early on. Midway through, Midland cut the lead to eight, 44-36, behind a jumper from Sarah Shepard. Feeling the momentum starting to slip, Hastings called a quick timeout.
A pair of free throws by Emma Shepard, followed shortly after by a jumper by Harrison pulled the Warriors within five points, 45-40, with just under three minutes to go. Tough breaks on the defensive end and missed shots on the other turned the tide to the visitors as they pushed the lead back out. Hastings closed the third quarter on a 12-2 run to take a 15-point advantage into the final quarter.
Their run continued in the fourth as they scored the first seven points, giving them their largest lead of the game, 64-42, with 8:18 to go. Midland’s offense started to heat up though. They blitzed the Broncos for 27 in the final eight minutes but could not get the stops they needed on the other end. The Warriors shot 10-of-14 in the final quarter, with 4 made threes. Jenna Weber, who was held quiet in the first 30 minutes erupted for 15 points in the fourth.
“We missed shots in the first half, early in the first quarter. I thought we had some good looks, we just didn’t make them,” said head coach Shawn Gilbert in his postgame comments. “They shot the ball well and those 10 or 12 points we spotted them in the first quarter ended up being the difference.”
Jenna Weber finished with a team-high 20 points, setting a new career high. Gabby Beauperthuy added 15 points to go along with a team-best 9 rebounds.
“Hastings is always good defensively,” Coach Gilbert added. “I thought we did a good job of attacking their big and getting her out of the game. We needed some others to step up and I think a couple of people did for us.”
As a team, Midland shot 26-of-59 (44.1%) for the game and was 6-of-24 (25%) from behind the arc. Hastings connected on nearly half of its threes, going 11-for-23 (47.8%) behind the arc, and was 29-for-64 (45.3%) from the field overall. Points in the paint and rebounds tilted slightly to the Broncos. They pulled down 39 rebounds compared to the Warriors’ 37 and had a 30 to 26 scoring advantage inside.
Coming up this weekend, Midland (5-18, 2-15 GPAC)) will look to get back into the win column with a road game at Jamestown (14-9, 10-7 GPAC). This will be the final game at Jamestown as conference foes with the Jimmies exiting the GPAC next year. Tipoff inside Harold Newman Arena is set for 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 10 in Jamestown, North Dakota.
