Fourth quarter run stifles Morningside

MITCHELL, S.D. – For better than 30 minutes, defending National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics' Division II champion and fourth-ranked Dakota Wesleyan University's advancement in the 2019 Great Plains Athletic Conference postseason tournament was in doubt.

A gritty and determined bunch of Morningside College Mustangs, undaunted by a recent slump and ranked No. 19 on the final regular-season poll, stepped forward and gave the home-standing Tigers all they could handle at the World's Only Corn Palace Wednesday, Feb. 20. Head coach Jamie Sale's squad, fueled by a 12-2 run to begin the second half, held a 46-38 lead with 4:56 to go in the third period. Despite a furious rally by DWU, the game remained tied 59-59 after three frames.

The fourth 10-minute block turned out to be the difference. Back-to-back three-pointers sparked an 8-0 stretch to start the final period and, even with the Maroon rallying to within two at one point, the visitors, dipping to 19-12, couldn't get the lead back, as Dakota Wesleyan hit eight straight free throw attempts in the final 1:12 to ice an 88-75 decision.

Morningside, who now prepares for a yet to be determined opponent at the 2019 NAIA Championships as the host team, was led by the talented trio of sophomore guard Sierra Mitchell (SO/Pleasant Hill, IA) (Pleasant Hill, Iowa), junior forward/center Sydney Hupp (JR/O'Neill, NE) (O'Neill, Neb.) and sophomore forward Kailey Burke (SO/Hinton, IA) (Hinton, Iowa). Mitchell tossed in 15 points, surpassing the 500-point mark for the season, while Burke came off the bench to total 13 which included three treys, and Hupp finished three rebounds shy of a double-double (11 points, seven rebounds, and two blocked shots) as part of an impressive night.