Knights End Titans' NCAA Postseason Journey
Kayla Engelhard had a season-high 28 points and nine assists to lift host Calvin College to a 91-71 victory over UW-Oshkosh in the second round of the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship on Saturday (March 7) in Grand Rapids, Mich.
Engelhard made 11 of 15 shots from the field and all four free throws to lead four double-digit scorers for the Knights, who advance to play DePauw University (Ind.) in the third round on Friday (March 13).
Calvin College, ranked sixth in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, shot 58.1 percent (36-62) from the field, 50 percent (6-12) from behind the 3-point arc and 72.2 percent (13-18) from the free throw line. The Knights (29-0), winners of 72 of their last 77 home games, recorded 29 assists. They entered the tournament leading the Division III with nearly 21 assists per contest.
Breanna Verkaik added 18 points, five rebounds, four assists and three blocks for Calvin College, which also received 16 points and a game-high nine rebounds from Anna Timmer and 14 points from Hannah Acre.
UW-Oshkosh scored on its first two possessions, but Calvin College took the lead for good at 5-4 on a 3-pointer by Engelhard with 18:26 left in the first half. Engelhard tallied the Knights' first nine points, and a 3-pointer by Verkaik capped a 10-0 scoring run that gave Calvin College a 12-4 advantage.
The Titans trimmed their deficit to 18-16 on a layup by Katelyn Kuehl, but Calvin College answered with eight straight points to take a 24-16 lead at the 11:34 mark. The Knights increased their lead to 38-24 on Engelhard's second long-range jumper of the period and owned a 45-35 advantage at intermission.
Calvin College's lead was cut to single digits on four occasions early in the second half, with the latest being a 50-41 score with 17:05 left. The Knights answered the threat with an 8-2 run to take a 58-43 lead with 13:49 remaining. Calvin College held its largest lead of 24 points at 73-49 and 75-51.
UW-Oshkosh (23-7) pulled to within 79-66 with 4:37 to go, but Calvin College secured the victory with 12 of the next 15 points.
UW-Oshkosh ended the game shooting 44.3 percent (27-61) from the floor and 70.8 percent (17-24) from the free throw line. The Titans did not make a 3-pointer in 11 attempts.
Taylor Schmidt paced UW-Oshkosh with 16 points and four assists. Marissa Selner and Kuehl added 12 and 10 points, respectively. Eliza Campbell chipped in nine points and Morgan Kokta seven points and four assists. Alex Richard led the Titans with seven rebounds.
Kuehl capped her collegiate career with 1,046 points. The two-time All-WIAC First Team selection registered 265 points in her freshman season at Wisconsin Lutheran College before transferring to UW-Oshkosh for the last three years. Kuehl tallied 217 points as a sophomore, 306 last season and 258 as a senior.
Alicia Tollefson, who also played her final contest as a Titan, concluded her 103-game career with 337 points.
UW-Oshkosh ends its second straight and 12th overall NCAA Division III Championship appearance with at least 20 wins for the third consecutive season.
UW-Oshkosh Postgame Press Conference
Photo courtesy of Sandy Palmatter