by DE PERE, Wis. (WLCSports.com) – Second-seeded Wisconsin Lutheran College went 6-for-6 from the free throw line in the final 0:26 seconds to seal a 57-54 Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Tournament title over top-seeded St. Norbert on Saturday at Mulva Family Fitness & Sports Center.
The Warriors (21-7), who have won 16 straight games, punched their ticket to the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament for the 13th time in program history.
Senior Janiyah Goner (Milwaukee, Wis.) started the scoring with a three-pointer, the first of five in the opening quarter for WLC. A follow-up triple from senior Kara Troxel (Bonduel, Wis.) gave Wisconsin Lutheran its largest lead of the first quarter at 6-2. The Green Knights grabbed their first lead at 7-6, and a 5-0 spurt late in the period pushed their lead to three at 19-16. Sophomore Margie Stevens (Oneida, Wis.) hit a three in the final minute of the quarter to tie the contest at 19-19 after one.
Troxel opened the second quarter with another three, but five straight points from SNC put them in front 24-22 with 7:36 remaining. Wisconsin Lutheran responded with a 7-0 scoring run with four free throws from Stevens and a shot clock-beating three from freshman Abby Cole (Fond du Lac, Wis.) for a five-point lead with 3:51 left. Goner beat the first-half horn with a layup and the Warriors went into halftime in front 31-28.
WLC built a game-high seven-point advantage at 37-30 following a layup from Goner midway through the third quarter. St. Norbert came within four points, but Wisconsin Lutheran extended it back to seven at the 2:10 mark. Neither team scored over the final two minutes and the Warriors carried a 42-35 lead into the final frame.
WLC held a pair of seven-point leads in the fourth quarter, including 49-42 with 5:13 on the clock following two free throws from senior Mack Hogenson (Neenah, Wis.). The Green Knights cut their deficit to two with five straight points with just 0:43 seconds left. Stevens answered with a layup, but a three-point play from SNC had them trailing by just one at 51-50 with 0:27 seconds to play. Wisconsin Lutheran closed out the contest at the free throw line, as St. Norbert came within one three times within the final half minute, but Troxel and Stevens combined to go 6-for-6 from the line. The Green Knights couldn’t get a game-tying shot off and the Warriors took home the title with a 57-54 victory.
Stevens scored 23 points and added four blocks, four rebounds, and three assists for WLC. Troxel poured in a career-high 18 points with four three-pointers and three steals. Goner finished with seven points and junior Jayden Hill (Kenosha, Wis.) grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds. Wisconsin Lutheran shot 35.6 percent (16-for-45) from the floor, but made 16 of its 20 free throw attempts for 80.0 percent.
Taylor Thiry scored a game-high 25 points for SNC (22-5), which shot 44.2 percent (23-for-52) from the floor. St. Norbert scored 36 points in the paint but went to the charity stripe just seven times.
