Nov. 22, 2008
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ST. PAUL, Minn. (Gangelhoff Center) - Senior guard Heidi Matzke (Red Lake Falls, Minn.) recorded her second consecutive twenty-point performance and 10th of her career as she became just the 14th player in BSU history to net 1,000 points in a career to help lead BSU to its first win of the 2008-09 season over Metro State, 62-60. BSU also got 11 points from sophomore Colleen McKay (Barnum, Minn.), her second double-digit scoring performance of the Wildwood Tip-Off Classic.

In a very evenly matched contest where there were 15 lead changes and nine tie scores the big differences was at the free-throw line. Bemidji State made three more free-throws than did Metro State which proved to be the main difference maker. The Beavers went 15-of-20 (.750) from the line while the Roadrunners were 12-of-18 (.667) from the charity stripe for the game.

Matzke led all players with a game-high 26 points on 9-of-18 from the field, 3-of-5 from behind the arc and 5-of-6 from the free-throw line grabbing one rebound and dishing out two assists. Joining Matzke in double-digits was McKay as she netted her second double-digit point total of the season with 11 points while grabbing seven rebounds. With her 26-points Matzke moves into the 12th spot on BSU’s all-time scoring list with 1,013 points.

Chelsea Williamson and Leandra Sands led the Roadrunners as they each recorded double-digit point totals. Williamson had a team-high 18 points on 5-of-8 shooting while Sands chipped in 10 points on 4-of-11 from the field. Megan Sinclair led MSC on the boards with seven rebounds while Jasmine Cervantes dished out a game-high four assists.

The teams started the game trading buckets as Chelsea LeFebre started the scoring giving the Roadrunners a 2-0 lead. BSU’s McKay converted on 1-of-2 from the free-throw line followed by a Sydney Epema (Fr., G, Crookston, Minn.) three-pointer to give BSU its first lead of the game, 4-2, at the 18:31 mark of the period.

Metro State went on a 16-8 run over the next 6:27 to push its lead to the largest of the half (18-12) with 12:22 left before the break. The Roadrunners were led by Williamson during the run as she had eight of the MSC 16 points. BSU quickly tied the game at 18-18 with 8:41 left in the half and finally regained the lead at 24-23 on a McKay free-throw with 5:45 left in the frame. BSU went on a 6-3 run to close out the half and take a 30-27 lead into the break.

The Beavers shot just 33.3 percent in the half (9-27) led by Matzke’s 12 first half points while the Roadrunners shot five points better at 38.7 percent (12-31) but the biggest difference was BSU made 10 more free throws then did MSC to help the Beavers hold a three point advantage at the half.

BSU extended its lead to five on a quick basket by Matzke (32-27) but the Roadrunners would rattle off 10 of the next 12 points to take its third lead of the game at 37-34 on a jumper my Megan Sinclair. The teams continued to trade baskets for the next 5:42 as neither team could create much separation from one another.

With the score tied for the sixth time of the game at 43-43 MSC went on a 10-2 run over a span of 2:16 to build the lead to eight points (53-45), the largest lead for either team in the game. Two quick three-pointers by Samantha Baldwin (Fr., PG, St. Thomas, N.D.) and Matzke followed by a pair of free-throws by Matzke tied the game at 53-53 with 5:21 left in the contest.

Matzke gave the Beavers the lead for good with :49 seconds left in the game as she broke a 58-58 tie knocking down her ninth field goal of the game. Megan Bates (Fr., F, Brainerd, Minn.) sealed the victory for the Beavers knocking down two clutch free-throws with :17 seconds remaining helping BSU hold on for the 62-60 win.

The Beavers finished the game shooting 21-of-53 (.396) from the field and 5-of-16 (.313) from behind the arc while the Roadrunners were just 21-of-55 (.382) from the field and 6-of-17 (.353) from behind the three-point arc.

The win moves BSU’s overall record to 1-2 and 0-0 in NSIC play and drops Metro State to 0-3 on the season. With the win the Beavers improve to 1-2 all-time versus Metro State and snaps a two game losing streak to the Roadrunners.

The Beavers will next be in action on Tuesday, Nov. 25 when they host Mayville State University in BSU’s 2008-09 home opener at the BSU Gymnasium. Game time is set for a 7 p.m. tip off.

Bemidji State University, located in Bemidji, Minn., is an NCAA Division II institution and a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).

--beavers--