<rtunately, Carleton’s four seniors, Annie Isler, Sarah Kunelius, Sarah Lincoln, and Hannah Oken-Berg, completed their careers with an 89-58 loss to the Bethel Royals last Saturday. With this loss, the Knights finished 11-14 (10-12 MIAC), good enough for eight place in the MIAC.
Early on, the game was a back-and-forth contest. After freshman Megan Erlandson’s three-pointer, the teams were tied at 16-16 with 9:50 left in the first half. However, over the next three minutes, Bethel went on a 14-2 run, and held on to that momentum to secure a 44-31 halftime lead.
Carleton was not able to turn the tide after halftime, since the Royals started the second half with a 12-0 lead. Bethel never looked back and grabbed an 89-58 victory and a fifth seed in the MIAC Playoffs.
It would have been tough for any team to stop the red-hot Royals. Throughout the game, Bethel shot an incredible 55.9 percent, and they converted 65.5 percent of their shots in the first half. In addition, the Knights struggled to control the interior, as the Royals had a 22-6 scoring advantage in the paint and a 44-28 rebounding advantage.
Despite this disappointing result, Carleton’s seniors can tout a series of notable accomplishments. In their careers, the Knights have earned three MIAC Playoff berths, and in the 2007-2008 season, they helped the Carleton earn its fifth National Tournament bid in program history.
In addition to these team accomplishments, these seniors have racked up a slew of individual achievements. Isler, one of the most intense and passionate players in the MIAC, is only the second player in Carleton history with 200+ steals and 300+ assists. But she brought more than these statistics. Her unquestionable love of basketball and her desire rubbed off on her teammates, and it was a quiet, but important factor in the Knights’ success.
Throughout her Carleton career, Kunelius was the epitome of a team player and the perfect bench player. She brought instant offense and energy with her lights-out three-point shooting. As a freshman, she set Carleton’s single-season record for three-point shooting (47.4 percent).
Lincoln was the team’s rock. She rarely had a bad game, which was probably the result of her toughness and tenacity in the post. Furthermore, she seemed to be near a double-double in every game. Lincoln is a two-time MIAC player, and she is fourth on Carleton’s career blocked shots list.
On top of the blocked shots list is none other than Hannah Oken-Berg. Beginning her career as a shot-blocking marvel and finishing her career as a consummate leader, Oken-Berg holds the career shot-blocking record by more than 100 blocks, and she is fourth in all-time scoring.
Surely, the Knights will miss these seniors next season. But, that said, there are plenty of reasons to be hopeful about the Knights’ prospects next season. Carleton will return two starters next year: Second-leading scorer Ally Weaver ’11 and “Miss Intangibles” Megan Mileusnic ’10. Carleton will also be returning many players who saw valuable playing time: Annie Eckhoff ‘10, Erlandson, Kayla Kramer ’12, Mollie Feldman ’11, and Georgia Brown ‘12. These players are quite capable of building their own winning tradition.