SUPERIOR, Wis. – Wednesday evening proved to be a big night for the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) women's basketball realm. As the Nos. 1 and 4 seeds duked it out, the Nos. 2 and 3 seeds battled for a conference championship berth. Up north saw the Yellowjackets and Martin Luther go toe to toe, while the Ericksen Center hosted the Eagles and Bethany Lutheran.
The 'Jackets got started in a hurry, with the help of
MyKenzie Leccia's (Somerset, Wis./Somerset) back-to-back threes. Throughout the contest she shot 50 percent from the field and logged six-of-12 triples, leading the Yellowjackets to an 80-75 overtime victory to host the league's championship game.
Game Notes
- UW-Superior saw Charlotte Ferstl (Plain, Wis./River Valley) grab her own board and putting it back early on before Leccia hit consecutive trey's. Ferstl, alongside Elise Besonen (Ewen, Mich./Ewen-Trout Creek) and Elsa Olson (Cottage Grove, Minn./Park) boosted the Yellowjackets to a 16-point lead at 20-4 midway through the first.
- The Knights rallied throughout end of the first until they snatched the lead late in the second. Emma Dorn and Mya Morris helped pace MLC's offense throughout the rally until Besonen took a feed from Katie Dobson (Black River Falls, Wis./Black River Falls) and drained a shot beyond the arc to regain a 35-32 lead before the break.
- Superior outscored the Knights 16-14 in quarter number three, with Leccia and Dobson connecting on shots to lead the charge. Turnovers impacted both squads but the 'Jackets stayed in possession of the lead at 51-46.
- Both teams traded blows in the fourth, but a three pointer by Dorn would create a logjam at 58-58. Besonen hit a trey to regain the lead, but Dorn responded a couple of minutes later to tie 63-63. Besonen drilled another triple, but Morris this time sent the dagger to tie things up at 66 all.
- The overtime period saw an early steal from the Knights but were unable to capitalize on the exchange. Ferstl drew a foul and split her free throws roughly midway through before she grabbed an offensive board and sent a shot up to take the lead at 67-66.
- MLC came within two after a Yellowjacket foul sent Ava Stein to the charity stripe, but another long ball from Leccia brought Superior in front. Despite a late attempt from the Knights, they would drop the contest 80-75, seeing their season come to an end.
- Dorn and Morris scored over half of the Knights' points, leading the charge offensively.
- Leccia finished the game with 24 points, besting her own record set earlier this season, leading Superior to the title game.
- Besonen logged 19 points on the night, while Olson saw 16.
- Ferstl once again logged a double-double, marking her fifth in as many games. She scored 15 while grabbing 14 boards.
UW-Superior (16-10, 11-3 UMAC) will host Northwestern in the conference championship game this Saturday. The opening tipoff is set for 4:30 p.m. inside Mertz Mortorelli Gym.
