<ve a chance for a playoff berth after a 66-59 win over the College of St. Catherine Wildcats. Both Hannah Oken-Berg ’09 and Sarah Lincoln ’09 nearly missed recording double-doubles. Oken-Berg had 13 points and nine rebounds while Lincoln tallied nine points and 12 rebounds.
At the start of the game, a Wildcat player recorded a quick eight points and helped St. Kate’s to 17-12 lead with 10:48 left in the first half. The Knights responded with an 18-8 run over the next six minutes. Carleton carried that momentum to a 40-28 halftime lead.
A large part of Carleton’s success in the first half was senior Sarah Kunelius, who had 10 points before halftime.
In the second half, the Knights struggled to maintain their shooting form. The team went an ice-cold one-for-nine from behind the three-point arc and shot a dismal 29 percent from the field. As a result, the Wildcats were able to climb back into the game, and they were within two points, 61-59, with 1:04 left in the game.
The Knights were able to pull out the victory with their senior leadership, as Oken-Berg and Annie Isler ’09 made five of six free throws in the last minute to seal a 66-59 victory. Free throw shooting was the key to the Knights’ victory since Carleton shot 80 percent from the line.
In addition, the bench performed extremely well. Annie Eckhoff ’10, Megan Erlandson ’12, and Kunelius contributed 22 points and 10 rebounds.
This victory over the Wildcats helped ease the pain of a 61-53 loss to the St. Thomas. The Tommies aggressive and physical defense frustrated the Knights, who committed 20 turnovers and shot 28.8 percent .
Since grabbing a 5-2 lead at the 15:39 mark in the first half, the Tommies never relinquished the lead. The Knights battled to within four points, 55-51, with 49 seconds left. However, St. Thomas converted their final six free throws and left with a 61-53 victory.
Ally Weaver ‘11 scored 17 points and converted four-of-eight three-pointers. Oken-Berg recorded a double-double with 14 points and 13 rebounds, and Lincoln posted eight points and 11 rebounds.
On Saturday, Carleton will try to keep their playoff hopes alive against Macalester at West Gym. Tipoff will be 1:00 p.m. During the game, the Knights will be participating in the Pink Zone event which increases awareness of and raises donations for breast cancer research. As part of this event, the Knights encourage to wear pink during the game. Please contribute this worthy cause.