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Women capture wins
Chris Solari
Argus Leader
published: 12/19/2004
2nd-half run keys SDSU
Brookings - South Dakota State's women used an 11-0 run to begin the second half, breaking open a tie game and claiming a 77-62 victory over Division III Wisconsin-Eau Claire on Saturday afternoon.
In front of 1,441 fans, SDSU used 3-pointers and defense to pull away from a 35-35 halftime score. Senior Brooke Dickmeyer canned a pair of deep shots in the first minute of the second period. After a layup by Shannon Schlagel, freshman Andrea Verdegan calmly knocked down another triple to stagger the Blugolds (7-3).
"I don't know what it was, but we came out a little bit flat. We weren't communicating, and our intensity wasn't as great as it should have been," said Schlagel, who finished with 14 points and seven boards. "We went in at halftime and said, 'In order to pull away from this team, we're going to have to step up in a lot of categories.'"
The Jackrabbits (7-3) led by nine or more points the rest of the way, watching their cushion grow to as many as 18 in their first home game since Nov. 15. They continue their three-game homestand at Frost Arena at 4 p.m. today against Loras College, closing it on Monday night against Ferris State.
"It is so great to be home," said SDSU sophomore Megan Vogel, who had game highs with 20 points and nine rebounds.
Dickmeyer added 15 points for the Jackrabbits, who started out as expected after an eight-game road swing against predominantly Division I competition. They built a 10-point lead just six minutes into the game, looking as if they would coast past the non-scholarship opponent.
But as Johnston dipped into his bench, Eau Claire went on a 13-2 run over the next three minutes to stay close. A pair of free throws by Blugolds senior Jessica Dickey gave her squad a brief lead with less than two minutes to play in the half.
SDSU knotted it at 35-all just before halftime on a layup by senior Sarita DeBoer, with help from a pretty cross-lane pass from freshman Courtney Grimsrud.
The Blugolds hit 4 of 9 3-pointers in the opening half, including three from Joanna Leafblad. They shot 41.7 percent from the field and held the Jacks to just over 39 percent, limiting SDSU to just 3-of-11 from behind the arc.
"We have some good outside shooters," said Dickey, who played two years at Augustana before transferring to Eau Claire prior to last season. "It was working for us today."
The numbers reversed in the second half, with the Jackrabbits clamping down on defense and working free for a number of open shots. SDSU made 50 percent after intermission, bottling up Eau Claire to just 36 percent.
"Defense is how we get our offense, how we get our transition going, it's everything for us," Vogel said. "The main key at halftime was, 'Let's pick up our defense, and the offense will come.'"
Rachel Becker led the Blugolds with 15 points, while Dickey, Leafblad and Katie Murphy each added 11 points.
Reach Chris Solari at 977-3923.