WINONA, Minn. — Every game in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference is "big."
But when the team you are facing shares third place with you in the conference standings, the game gets that much "bigger."
In other words, Saturday's showdown between the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's basketball team and visiting Concordia was a "big" game.
And the Cobbers learned first-hand that Saint Mary's
Octavia Brown (Broadview, Ill.) comes up biggest in big games.
The Cardinal senior poured in a career-high 22 points—nine more than her previous career best—in leading Saint Mary's to a 79-73 overtime win over Concordia at the Saint Mary's Gym.
Saint Mary's led by as many as 11 in the second half, but CC responded knotting the game at 63-63 on a Olivia Johnson 3-pointer with 10 seconds remaining in regulation to send the game into overtime.
In the extra session, the Cardinals outscored the Cobbers 16-10—including 12 from the free throw line—to ice the victory.
Brown wasn't the only Cardinal enjoying a career day, as
Sam Jones (White Bear Lake, Minn.) and
Alexa Huisman (Adrian, Minn.) enjoyed their best days in a Saint Mary's uniform with 16 and 12 points, respectively.
Sara Schoenthaler (White Bear Lake, Minn.) also finished in double figures for the Cardinals, scoring 12 points, including 10 in the game's opening 20 minutes.
Saint Mary's raced out to an early 6-1 lead and led 16-15 with 11:15 on the clock, before CC's Olivia Johnson knocked down a jumper to give the Cobbers their first lead since 1-0 at 17-16.
The next time Concordia scored, however, the Cardinals had rattled off 12 straight points as part of an eight-minute, 20-2 run that gave Saint Mary's what appeared to be a commanding 17-point, 36-19 advantage with 2:44 on the clock.
Concordia regrouped with a half-ending 8-0 burst that cut the Cardinals' lead to nine, 36-27 at the break.
The Cobbers opened the second half with a 13-5 run to make it a one-point game, 41-40, but Saint Mary's responded, pushing its lead back to 11, 59-48 with 5:41 to play—setting up the dramatic finish.
Johnson scored a team-high 21 points for the Cobbers, while Annalise Savageau added 14 and Alley Fisher chipped in 10.
The Cardinals (9-5 MIAC, 15-6 overall) are back in action on Wednesday, traveling to St. Joseph, Minn., for a 7 p.m. conference showdown with Saint Benedict.
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