Streak Snappers - Mustangs upend top-ranked Concordia

SEWARD, NEB. – Key individual outputs from all corners and a big second-half comeback enabled the number eight ranked team on the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics' Division II poll to produce a signature victory Wednesday, Nov. 28.

Head coach Jamie Sale's Morningside College Mustangs, moving to 7-1 overall and 5-1 in Great Plains Athletic Conference action, trailed top-ranked Concordia University by as much as 11 points during the first 20 minutes inside Walz Human Performance Center. The Maroon didn't let that deter their mission, though, ebbing away by closing to within seven at halftime (45-38) and using a 16-7 run over the final 7:12 of the third quarter to set the scoreboard at 60-58. The home team upped their edge to four early in the final stanza, but a 9-0 run sparked by the bench play of senior forward Alexandra Gill (SR/Omaha, NE) (Omaha, Neb.) crashing the boards and junior guard Skyler Snider (JR/Kearney, NE) (Kearney, Neb.) tallying some of her game-high 17 points as well as the continued impressive long-range shooting of sophomore guard Sierra Mitchell (SO/Pleasant Hill, IA) (Pleasant Hill, Iowa), allowed the Mustangs to take an advantage they wouldn't relinquish in route to an 84-75 victory.

Beyond a set of four players winding up in double figures, Morningside's defense played a pivotal role in helping take down the division's top-ranked program and ending its 40-game home win streak. Sale's crew allowed Concordia to shoot a tepid 39.2 percent and less than 25 percent from outside the arc. The Mustangs also out-rebounded their hosts 52-40, as junior forward Sydney Hupp (JR/O'Neill, NE) (O'Neill, Neb.) registered her second successive double-double (11 points and 10 rebounds), and Snider, Gill, and Mitchell managed seven, five and five caroms, respectively. The 50-plus boards marked the third time this season that the Mustangs have finished at-or-above the mark.

Scoring-wise, Snider's 17, 14 from Mitchell which included three steals and 11 each from Hupp and Gill boosted the win. Sophomore guard Tayte Hansen (SO/York, NE) (York, Neb.) wasn't far behind with nine, hitting three three-point buckets; junior guard Jordyn Moser (JR/Harlan, IA) (Harlan, Iowa) finished with eight which featured a perfect six-of-six evening at the free throw line; and sophomore forward Kailey Burke (SO/Hinton, IA) (Hinton, Iowa) added seven.

The Mustangs take to the road again Saturday, Dec. 1. Game time at Hastings College's Lynn Farrell Arena is 2 p.m.