Division II Huskies Edge Titans In Exhibition Game
Leah Porath had a team leading 15 points, seven rebounds and two assists as the UW-Oshkosh women's basketball team's comeback attempt came up short during a 71-67 exhibition setback at nationally ranked NCAA Division II member Michigan Technological University on Thursday (Nov. 4) in Houghton, Mich.
UW-Oshkosh, ranked 17th in the NCAA Division III by D3hoops.com, held a 30-29 lead at halftime but faced a 54-45 deficit entering the fourth quarter.
Michigan Tech, which compiled a 20-2 record last season and enters the year ranked 23rd in Division II by D2SIDA, extended its lead to 58-45 early in the final period and owned a 69-58 advantage with under two minutes to play. However, UW-Oshkosh pulled within 69-67 with seven seconds remaining on a Jenna Jorgensen 3-pointer.
The Huskies then hit two free throws with two seconds left to escape with the four-point victory.
UW-Oshkosh knocked down 10 3-pointers on 17 attempts and outrebounded Michigan Tech, 34-31. The Titans finished the exhibition shooting 41.2% (21-51) from the floor and 75% (15-20) at the free throw line.
Michigan Tech went 27 of 62 (.435) from the field, 10 of 21 (.476) from beyond the 3-point arc and 7-for-9 (.778) at the foul line. The Huskies held advantages of 16-12 in assists, 12-15 in turnovers, 7-4 in steals and 3-2 in blocks.
Porath, a D3hoops.com Preseason First Team All-American, shot 6-for-14 from the field en route to pacing the Titans in scoring.
UW-Oshkosh had four double digit scorers as Nikki Arneson had 13 points, and Ava Douglas and Brooke Freitag added 10 apiece off the Titans bench. Freitag, who shot 4-for-7 from the floor, and Douglas combined to go 4-for-6 from 3-point range.
Michigan Tech's Ellie Mackay led all players with 28 points on 10 of 18 shooting from the floor, including 6-for-8 from 3-point range.
Katelyn Meister contributed 10 points in a reserve role for the Huskies, who also received six points and eight rebounds from Sara Dax, and six points, six boards and five assists from Daisy Ansel.
Michigan Tech scored the first seven points of the game, but UW-Oshkosh answered with seven straight points of its own on the way to forging ties at 7 on a Freitag 3-pointer, at 10 after a Douglas 3-pointer, at 15 following an Arneson jumper and again at 19 on a Porath layup. Freitag's second and final 3-pointer provided the Titans their first lead at 23-22 with 3:07 left in the second quarter.
Douglas' second and last 3-pointer gave UW-Oshkosh a 26-24 edge with under three minutes to play in the first half. Porath and Freitag then made jumpers during the latter stages of the second quarter as the Titans entered intermission with a 30-29 lead.
Michigan Tech reclaimed control by outscoring the Titans, 26-15, in the third quarter as the Huskies shot 11 of 18 from the field, and Mackay and Meister scored 10 points apiece during the period.
The Titans held Michigan Tech to 33.3% (5-15) shooting from the floor in the fourth quarter while connecting a 5 of 9 3-pointers during the frame. Arneson, Jorgensen, Porath, Julia Silloway and Kayce Vaile each converted long-range jumpers as the Titans cut their deficit to one possession late in the game.
UW-Oshkosh, the defending Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season and tournament champion, opens the 2021-22 regular season with a nonconference game Friday (Nov. 5) at Finlandia University in Hancock, Mich.
Photo courtesy of the Michigan Tech Sports Information Office