
SEWARD, Neb. – Bree Bunting and Savannah Butterfield were out front in the barrage (100-53) over the College of Saint Mary Flames on Wednesday (Jan. 22). The Bulldogs attacked the Flames with 15 steals while forcing 27 turnovers in the rout at Lied Fitness Center. Four Concordia University, Nebraska Women’s Basketball teammates reach double figures in the march to a century.
Head Coach Drew Olson’s side lunges to 9-10 overall and 6-9 in conference play.
“It was a great game,” said Coach Olson. “We talked about the maturity of the game. Not just to show up, but to show out and actually do really well. We had a lot of players step up and take advantage of the opportunities that they had tonight. With Savy (Butterfield), we know she is capable of great things and we are hoping she continues to take strides forward. Bree played great. Across the board, Joclyn played really well. Makynna played really well. It was great to see a full group. I would say the bench outplayed the starters tonight.”
Tied at four, the Bulldogs went on two scoring drives (11-0, 10-0) starting in the first quarter which ended early in the second to go up 28-9. The onslaught continued as the visitors finished with a 28-5 heater powered by Bree Bunting’s eight points, finishing the stretch with a 56-19 lead. Bunting, a sophomore out of Kersey, Colo., reached a new career high in points (13) and hit 11 in the first 15 minutes of the contest.
Twelve Bulldogs tallied a score before the halftime break (13 total) and shot 51.2 percent (22-for-43) in the first two frames. The bench racked up 74 of the 100 points including all four hitting double digits: Bunting, Butterfield (13), Jordan Ernstmeyer (10) and Hoffman (10).
In the second half, Brigham kept the Dawgs out in front with seven points in the third and Butterfield racked up nine of her 13 season high points in the last two quarters. A freshman, out of Fenton, Mo., the guard added three rebounds and two steals. Makynna Robbins did damage in all four quarters totaling 12 rebounds and eight points.
Concordia nabbed its second highest game in rebounds (47) to CSM’s 31. The Bulldogs swept the Flames in points in the paint (62-16) shooting 48.8 percent (40-for-82) total from the floor.
College of Saint Mary (1-19, 0-14 GPAC) was paced by Mia Stewart (16) and Makenna Earnest (seven). Maura Tichota pitched in nine rebounds and five points. The Flames shot 33.3 percent from the field (15-for-45) and three-point range (6-for-18). They are set to face Dordt on the road this Saturday.
Concordia (9-10) will have to fly out tomorrow for the 72nd Concordia Invitational Tournament. The Bulldogs are scheduled to clash with Concordia University Chicago (1-14) on Friday in Ann Arbor, Mich. Tip off is set for 12 p.m. CT/1 P.M. ET at the Cardinal Fieldhouse.
Coach Olson said, “We are excited about the CIT experience. It is going to be a lot of fun. For our players, just to be in that kind of atmosphere is going to be awesome.”