No. 8 Tigers fall in final seconds in GPAC title game

SEWARD, Neb. – With less than a second left, No. 2 Concordia University knocked down a layup to defeat the No. 8 Dakota Wesleyan University women's basketball team in the Great Plains Athletic Conference Championship Game, 90-88 Tuesday in Seward, Neb.

 Both teams got off to a hot start as they traded baskets in the opening minutes. The Bulldogs (31-1) extended their lead with a quick 5-0 run in a minute of play. However, the Tigers (27-5) continued to chip away at the Concordia lead as Rylie Osthus (De Smet, S.D.) knocked down a jump shot to make it a 22-16 game. Osthus made a pair of free throws a moment later, followed by a Makaela Karst (Plankinton, S.D.) layup at the buzzer to make it a 24-21 game in the favor of Concordia after the first quarter.

 The Bulldogs pushed their lead to six points to begin the second quarter. The Tigers had an answer as Amber Bray (Anoka, Minn.) made a jump shot and Osthus connected on a 3-pointer. A minute later, Kynedi Cheeseman (Alexandria, S.D.) knocked down a three-point shot to give DWU its first lead of the game at 33-32.

 Midway through the second quarter, Jessica Mieras (Sioux Falls, S.D.) added four-straight points for the Tigers. Concordia tied the game at 39 following a free throw, but Karst helped DWU regain the lead thanks to a 3-pointer. Karst and Osthus made four free throws at the end of the first half to help the Tigers take a 52-48 lead at halftime.

 Coming out of the break, Cheeseman made a jump shot, followed by a pair of free throws by Osthus to give the Tigers a 56-50 lead. Concordia chipped away at the DWU lead and eventually took the lead with 1:44 left in the third quarter. With less than a minute left in the third stanza, Karst made another jump shot to pull the Tigers within four points heading to the fourth quarter.

 With the Bulldogs leading 73-66, Sarah Carr (Huron, S.D.) muscled her way up for a layup after getting fouled and made the ensuing free throw. On the Tigers next possession, Karst drained a deep 3-pointer to make it a 75-72 game. With 5:43 to play, Amber Bray nailed a jumper to give DWU the lead. The teams traded baskets until Ashley Bray (Anoka, Minn.) made a jump shot and a free throw to give DWU the lead, 81-77.

 Concordia regained a two-point lead with 28 seconds left. After a DWU timeout, Ashley Bray calmly knocked down two free throws to tie the game with four seconds to play. However, Concordia retook the lead after making a layup with less than a second left. With 0.7 seconds to play, Cheeseman got a shot off, but bounced off the rim as the buzzer sounded.

 Osthus led the Tigers with 20 points, five rebounds and four assists. Karst notched 16 points, while Cheeseman added 14 points and seven rebounds, as Amber Bray tallied 13 points and four rebounds. The Tigers shot 53 percent from the field and 96 percent from the free-throw line. DWU finished with 35 rebounds and 20 assists.

 The Tigers will wait for the pairings of the NAIA Women's National Basketball Tournament as they will be announced Wednesday at 6 p.m. The NAIA National Tournament begins on March 7 in Sioux City, Iowa.