Box Score
SIOUX CITY, IA – The #23 Comets ventured south to Sioux City, Iowa to take on two teams in the Briar Cliff Holiday Classic, hosted by Briar Cliff University. Their first contest would be against one of the best teams in the NAIA, the #6 Morningside College Mustangs, also out of Sioux City. The early afternoon game would be another tough test against a highly ranked team for the Comets this season.
In first half action, full court pressure by the Mustangs was an issue for the Comets as they struggled to find a rhythm right away. The score was tied at five each when the Mustangs went on a big 20-2 run.
Naomi Torgerson tried to break the momentum a bit with five points of her own, but the high pressure defense was a bit too much as the Comets were down 31-12 at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter saw the same amount of pressure come from the Mustangs, their press was working well in preventing the Comets in finding their own offense. Some costly turnovers and errors on passes quickly turned into more points for Morningside. The Comets were able to produce the same amount of points as they did in the first quarter and found themselves down at the half by 27, 51-24.
Although both teams started the third quarter in a scoring drought for the first two minutes, it didn't take long for Morningside to find their groove again. The Comets were outscored 18-9, having a hard time finding the bucket, and found themselves down by 36 with one more quarter to go.
Andi Gayner had a strong second half for the Comets, providing a boost for the team when they really needed it. The Comets were able to start hitting some baskets in the 4th quarter and outscored the Mustangs 23-20 in the final 10 minutes of play. In the end, the #6 Mustangs were too much to handle in the 89-56 loss for #23 MSU.
Leading all scorers was
Andi Gayner with 23 points, which included going 8-10 at the free throw line, and 7-15 from the field. Following her was
Naomi Torgerson with eight, while
Andrea Skillingstad and
Sydney Gangl each added six. Torgerson led the team in rebounds with eight, Gayner and Skillingstad ended the game with six each.
The Comets shot 35.7% from the field, while Morningside shot 47% in comparison. Turnovers were a big factor as the Comets committed 32 of them, 18 of which were steals by the Mustangs. They also converted those turnovers into 48 points of their own.
The 10-4 Comets have little rest as they face the host team of the BC Holiday Classic, Briar Cliff, on Saturday night at 5:30 pm.
