Arrows drop G-MAC title game

The title was there for the taking March 4 in the championship game of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference women’s tournament at Seidman Gymnasium.

With a gutsy comeback in the fourth quarter, the second-seeded Malone Pioneers took it from the firstseeded Ursuline Arrows.

Malone, down by seven points after three quarters, outscored the host Arrows in the final quarter, 22-7, to claim the 72-64 victory.

The Pioneers upped their record to 23-6, secured the automatic bid to the NCAA Division II women’s tournament and reveled in the postgame celebration that included cutting down the nets. “These teams know each other so well, we knew this game would be a grind. A lot pf people stepped up and made big plays,” Malone senior point guard Rachel Goddard said.

Goddard made many of those big plays, leading all scorers with 21 points. Senior center Hannah McCue added 20 points as the Pioneers followed up an 8180 home victory over Ursuline in the regular-season finale with an even bigger win one week later in the tournament title game.

The Pioneers went on a 9-0 tear to open the fourth quarter and seize the lead at 59-57. They book-ended that spurt with an 8-0 run to nail down the victory on Ursuline’s home court.

“We finally got the momentum going our way and rode it out to the end,” Malone coach Rick Tice said.

That decisive fourth quarter was a bitter pill to swallow for the Arrows, winners of the last two GMAC regular-season titles and the defending tournament champion.

“We made too many mistakes and didn’t make enough plays. They just got us,” Ursuline sophomore guard Natalie Koenig said.

Koenig finished with a team-high 20 points for the Arrows, who slipped to 23-7.

Junior forward Laney Lewis added 18 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Senior center Camryn Hill scored 14 points and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.