Stellar shooting sends Mustangs to fifth straight triumph

By Daniel Ver Steeg, Morningside College sports information student staff

OMAHA, NEB. – Morningside College's women's basketball team opened up the 2021 calendar year with a 77-40 blowout over the Flames from College of Saint Mary Saturday, January 2.

The win was head coach Jamie Sale's team's fifth in a row, moving their record to 11-2 overall and 9-1 in the Great Plains Athletic Conference, which kept them two games on the loss column side in front of Concordia University on the league standings.

The Maroon didn't waste time lighting up CSM's Lied Recreation Center gym scoreboard, hitting a whopping nine for 17 from three-point range over the first half. Senior guard Sierra Mitchell (SR/Pleasant Hill, Iowa) (Pleasant Hill, Iowa) had six of those to go into the halftime break with 18 points. Her effort helped guide a 43-17 advantage at the interval, which was also attributed to some lights-out defense. The home team was only able to muster 31.3% shooting from the field and turned the ball over 21 times due in large part to nine Mustangs steals.

Sale was able to go to his bench in the second half, as the lead continued to grow en route to the 14^th straight victory in the series. All 16 active players saw three-or-more minutes each. The Flames' 40 points were the fewest Morningside had allowed since January 7, 2015, when Dordt University managed only 37.

Mitchell topped the scoring ladder with 20, becoming the eighth member of the program's 1,700-point club. Junior forward Taylor Rodenburgh (JR/Hawarden, Iowa) (Hawarden, Iowa) came very close to the squad's fourth double-double finishing with 12 points and a season-high nine rebounds.

Beyond those marks were a slew of new career-bests for several Maroon individuals. Freshman guard Olivia Boudreau (FR/Papillion, Neb.) (Papillion, Neb.) set a new career-high in points with six and added her first blocked shot. Junior guard Madison Clayton (JR/Sioux City, Iowa) (Sioux City, Iowa) broke her previous career-high in assists of two by dishing out seven dimes. Senior guard Faith Meyer (SR/Pomeroy, Iowa) (Pomeroy, Iowa) tied her career-high in assists with five. Finally, sophomore post player Sadie Roth (SO/Sioux Falls, SD) (Sioux Falls, S.D.) set a new career-high with a first multi-block game, recording two rejections.

Morningside travels to Crete, Nebraska, on Wed., January 6, to wrap up the first half of the conference regular-season schedule. A 6 p.m. contest against Doane University, part of a doubleheader the Mustangs men's team, awaits inside the George and Sally Haddix Recreation Center.