Mustangs close out Skylights' amazing year
George Ferguson
Havre Daily News sports editor
gferguson@havredailynews.com
There is a saying that goes something like: All good things must come to an
end.
On Friday afternoon, in
“We have had an amazing season and it has certainly had a little bit of
everything,” MSU-N first-year head coach Chris Mouat said. “It is bittersweet
right now because we feel like we could have gone farther in this tournament.
“But I am so proud of these kids and what they
have accomplished on and off the court this season,” Mouat added. “They have
done some amazing things this year.”
As amazing as the Skylights' run has been over the last four months, they had
opportunities to keep marching on against the highly-touted Mustangs on Friday
afternoon.
The two teams battled back and forth throughout the first half until the
Mustangs nudged ahead, 31-29 at the break.
In the second half, Northern asserted itself from the outside and also put the
clamps down on the Mustangs defensively. By the time the clock had reached the
six-minute mark, the Skylights were out in front and appeared poised to advance
to the final eight of the tournament.
“We played really good basketball in some stretches,” Mouat said. “And one of
those stretches was midway through the second half when we were able to make
some shots and get a pretty comfortable lead.
“But they switched back from the man-to-man defense they had been in to a zone
defense that had bothered us a little the whole game,” he added. “And that is
when we just weren't able to knock down the shots and put them away.”
Conversely, the Mustangs went on a 3-point shooting tear down the stretch that
saw them make three straight long-range bombs to reclaim the lead with time
winding down.
The Skylights had several chances in the final minute to tie or take the lead,
but in the end, they just didn't convert.
“The game really came down to them (Mustangs) making plays and making big shots
down the stretch,” Mouat said. “They came up with three huge threes in a row
and we just didn't respond.
“We were in a position to respond and we just didn't convert,” he added. “We
had a couple of costly turnovers and a charge that hurt us in the final
minute.”
Indeed, the game was a mixture of two very good teams trying to make the most
out of each other's miscues.
MSU-N only shot 40 percent from the field and 28 percent from the 3-point-line.
The Mustangs didn't fare much better, shooting a poor 35 percent from the floor
and 29 percent from beyond the arc. But when the game was on the line, TMC's
Kinsley Mittel knocked in two huge treys and The Master's made some clutch free
throws to prevent Northern from continuing its magic carpet ride of a season.
Jessica Seyler paced the Mustangs with 17 points. Seyler was starting in the
absence of senior point guard Grace Tappe who was injured in the Mustangs'
first-round game. Mittel scored 16 points, including four of the Mustangs'
seven 3-pointers. Junior forward Courtney Jackson chipped in with 13 points and
10 rebounds.
MSU-N seniors Jaci Heny and Camille Gardner ended their fine careers by scoring
17 and 10 points, respectively. Heny had a tough day from the floor making just
3-of-8 shot attempts. Heny did go 11-of-12 from the foul line while playing
with foul trouble throughout much of the second half.
“It was tough to see this come to an end for our two seniors,” Mouat said. “They
have both had tremendous careers here and they have done a great deal for this
team, for our program and for this university.”
Delayne Johnston recorded her twelfth double-double of the season with 11
points and 10 rebounds. Michele VanDyke also chipped in with 11 points and Jena
Heggem added nine.
While MSU-N was the last Frontier Conference school to exit the tournament, the
Mustangs are still alive. On Saturday night the second-seeded Mustangs knocked
off No. 1-ranked Freed-Hardeman University in overtime, 57-56 to advance to
tonight's NAIA Final Four.
“They are a very good basketball team and they are very seasoned and athletic,”
Mouat said. “That's what makes it tough, because we had chances to put them
away. We feel like we certainly could have taken this farther.
“But this team can hold its head high,” he added. “They have done a lot this
season and they have been through a lot. This has been a great year for our
team and for our program.”
The Skylights' season ended with a 20-10 overall record, a fourth-place finish
in the Frontier Conference and the school's first trip to the NAIA tournament
since 2001.
Mustangs 67, Skylights 62
MSU-N - DeLayne Johnston 4-10 3-4 11, Jena Heggem 3-9 1-1 9, Michele VanDyke
4-10 3-6 11, Camille Gardner 4-8 0-0 10, Jaci Heny 3-8 11-12 17, Ashley Trulock
2-3 0-0 4. Totals: 20-50 18-23 62.
TMC - Angela Gimeno 3-6 0-0 7, Kinsley Mittel 6-20 0-0 16, Jessica Seyler 6-13
3-4 17, Jenn Ayers-Stamper 3-12 0-0 6, Courtney Jackson 5-10 3-5 13, Stacy
Nanninga 1-4 3-4 5, Kelsey Schugert 1-4 1-4 3. Totals: 25-71 10-17 67.
Halftime - TMC 31, MSU-N 29. 3-pointers - TMC 7-24 (Gimeno 1, Mittel 4, Seyler
2), MSU-N 4-14 (Heggem 2, Heny 2). Rebounds - TMC 45, MSU-N 37. Fouls - TMC 16,
MSU-N 18. Fouled out - Heny.