Dakota State sours Sweet 16 for Lady Jays years ago
Dream season ends
for No. 4 Tabor on
77-58 loss to Lady Trojans
By RYAN RICHTER
Sports writer
Ever since pushing the eventual two-time defending national champ Morningside, Iowa, to the limit a year ago at the NAIA Women's Division II National Tournament, expectations have been high for the Lady Bluejays.
While some teams would be satisfied just making the NAIA's Big Dance, the Bluejays had their sights set on something bigger — the Final Four.
No KCAC team has been able to do that since Lonnie Kruse led the bitter Bluejay rival Sterling Lady Warriors to within a game of playing for the title.
With nearly all of their starters back from a team that caused a stir at last year's tournament, this season appeared to be the Bluejays' best chance at making it even further.
Somebody forgot to tell the Dakota State Lady Trojans about that, though, Friday in the quarterfinal round of the national tournament in Sioux City, Iowa.
While the Trojans couldn't seem to miss the second half, shooting a burning 63 percent, Tabor couldn't get anything to fall as No. 18 DSU (22-10) bumped the Bluejays (28-5), 77-58.
The Bluejays connected on a modest 29 percent the second half and 33 for the game while the Trojans were a red-hot 55.
Much of Tabor's success this season has come from opponents' inability to match up inside against its size.
But Tabor ran into somebody Friday that had more size, with four players on the Trojan roster 6-foot-1 or taller.
That was a big factor with DSU getting 41 points in the paint, led by 6-2 Sara Nelson's team-high 14 points.
"That's the most height we've faced all year, hands down," Bluejay coach Rusty Allen said. "They really got us inside. They shot the ball well and we didn't. That was the difference in the game.
"The game was definitely a lot closer than what the score would indicate though."
A team that looks and thrives on getting the ball inside, the Bluejays had to rely on their perimeter shooting with DSU stymieing Tabor's post.
For a team that is among the NAIA's top 15 in three-point shooting, averaging 36 percent a game, the Bluejays were ice cold at an inopportune time, connecting on a frozen 23 percent.
That's going against a team that yields 32 percent from outside to its opponents and one that could only hit 28 percent of its shots in a first-round win.
Unfortunately for the Bluejays, the Trojans picked them to play one of their best games of the season against.
Emily Vogts and KCAC Player-of-the-Year Erica Hemmert gave the Bluejays a quick 4-0 lead in the first 1:19 before DSU could get on the board.
In her final game as a Bluejay, Hemmert finished with 12 points, including two threes and pulling down a team-high seven rebounds.
Despite the Trojans tying the game twice in the 4:00, Tabor was able to maintain its lead and stretch it as far as 13-8 after Jill Hein's basket at the 14:14 mark.
DSU then scored five straight points with Nelson getting the Trojans over the hump with just under 11:00 left in the first half, 16-15.
Tabor would lead once more after one of Hein's four first-half buckets.
From that 14:14 mark on, the Bluejays were facing an uphill battle.
"They went zone on us and we had lots of opportunities," said Allen. "We just couldn't get anything to go down."
Hemmert buried a three to get Tabor as close as 28-25 before DSU used an 8-0 run to go up 39-31 at the break while hitting 48 percent from the floor.
Hein's 10 points were one of the only things keeping the Bluejays in the game at halftime.
Back-to-back baskets from Vogts and Erica Dechant closed the gap to 41-37 before DSU was up again by double digits.
Dechant's three triples helped end her career with a game-season-high 15 points.
Tabor never got any closer than six the final 9:12 as the Trojans scored 10 unanswered points to jump ahead, 71-51, and pull one point shy of their largest lead.
The Bluejays final four points of the record-setting season came from sophomore Katie Fast.
'It was a great season," said Allen. "We had the longest winning streak in the NAIA and we had several players gain recognition. It really was a great year. I'm really proud of our girls."
One day later, the Trojans were finished, too, falling 55-41, to the Hastings Lady Broncos in the Elite Eight.
Tabor will have some big shoes to fill with the loss of six seniors, but Allen has signed recruits and should return enough players to again make the Bluejays the team to beat next year.
