Courtesy of Midland Athletics
OMAHA, Neb. — Midland University traveled to Omaha on Tuesday evening for a midweek Great Plains Athletic Conference matchup against the College of Saint Mary (CSM). The Warriors fell to the Flames, 66-51.
A jumper by Skylar Indra opened the scoring for Midland, but a jumper and free throw by Jai’la Porter sparked a 5-2 start for the Flames. The teams traded baskets midway through the first quarter before a layup by Lexi Barnes pushed the Flames’ lead to five, prompting a Midland timeout. After the break, a short scoring drought ended with a layup by Addy Offuttthat cut the deficit to three. CSM closed the quarter on a 5-0 run, and Midland trailed 16-8 after one.
The back-and-forth scoring continued early in the second quarter until a layup by Tyra Berrycut the margin to 20-14, forcing a CSM timeout. The Flames responded with a 4-0 run to take a 10-point lead with six minutes left in the half. Midland stayed within reach on a Berry three-pointer and a layup by Aiyana Kroll, but the Flames maintained control. Three free throws by Haley Debuse extended the Flames’ lead to 31-19 with 2:30 left in the quarter. A layup from Offutt and another three-pointer by Berry gave the Warriors momentum, but they trailed 33-24 at halftime.
CSM opened the third quarter on a 7-0 run, prompting another Midland timeout. The Warriors’ offense slowed coming out of the break until a Kroll layup stopped the drought, but Midland still trailed 42-26 with five minutes left in the period. Back-to-back layups by Barnes stretched the Flames’ lead before Jenna Weber answered with a jumper. Midland entered the fourth quarter down 50-29.
The Warriors made a push early in the fourth behind a Weber jumper and another Berry three-pointer. The teams traded baskets for the next several minutes, and CSM led 56-40 with five minutes remaining. A jumper by Weber cut the margin to 14, leading to another Flames timeout. Midland put together a quick 4-0 burst to make it 56-46, but two free throws by Porter steadied the Flames. Weber added another jumper, and Berry hit her fourth three-pointer, but key rebounds late allowed the Flames to secure the win.
Berry led Midland with 15 points. Weber recorded her first double-double of the season with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Midland shot 21-of-77 (27.3%) from the field while CSM finished 22-of-65 (33.8%). The Warriors outrebounded the Flames 53-48 and held a 31-20 advantage in bench scoring.
“If I’m being honest, I feel we got cheated out of a competitive game,” head coach Chris Burks commented. “The foul calls were extremely one-sided tonight — 29 free throw attempts for them and only six for us. We outscored them in the fourth because we stepped up our defensive intensity and were able to knock down a couple of shots.”
Midland (0-8, 0-4 GPAC) will travel to face York (4-5) on Saturday, Nov. 29. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. inside the Freeman Center in York, Neb.
