On Saturday, Feb. 15, the Wayne State College men’s and women’s basketball teams each picked up a win in the final home game of the season against the Bemidji State Beavers. The Wildcats won 78-73 on the men’s side, with the women taking home a thrilling 58-55 victory.
Both teams suffered losses on Valentine’s Day to the St. Cloud State Huskies, so were looking to bounce back to send the seniors home with a win in their final game at Rice Auditorium.
The Wildcat men started off the night and came out on fire to start the game against the Beavers, a fire that burned all throughout the first half.
After a close contest through the first three minutes, the Wildcats found their offensive rhythm. The next seven minutes saw WSC go on a 16-2 run, pulling out to an 11-point lead.
Starting at the 9:10 mark of the first half, senior point guard Jay Saunders found the hot hand, scoring the next 10 points for the Wildcats, including two deep threes to conclude his heat-check.
Those two threes from Saunders started a 24-6 run over the last seven and a half minutes, capped by another senior, Sean Stokes, hitting a buzzer-beating three to put WSC up 51-24 at halftime.
The first half saw WSC shoot 19-32 from the field, including 10-18 from beyond the three-point arc. That equates to a 59.4% shooting mark. Saunders finished with 17 first half points.
However, the script flipped in the second half. Bemidji State started to find their shooting legs and started to slowly chip away at the WSC lead. The lead was cut to 18 after five minutes of action in the half, trimmed to 14 at the eight-minute mark and slashed to nine with just under a minute remaining.
It proved to be too little too late for Bemidji State, as WSC survives the Beaver rally for a 78-73 Senior Day victory. All five seniors in Saunders, Stokes, Ryan Blum, Noah Erikson and Cody McCullough all ended with points in the scorebook. Saunders led the way, as the point guard finished with 20 points.
“As I reflect on all of my memories there and the teammates that I’ve shared the court with, I just feel grateful to finish it like that with that group of guys,” Saunders said. “I‘ve grown in my ability to handle adversity on and off the court.“
McCullough finished with 13 points and eight rebounds and Stokes finished with 11. One non-senior also finished with a double-digit points in JJ Ferrin, who had 13.
The Wildcat women found themselves on the other side of a hot shooting team, as the Beaver women came out shooting 8-11 in the first quarter, including a perfect 3-3 from three-point range. The Wildcats were able to keep within striking distance all quarter, but the Beavers held the 21-18 lead.
The second quarter saw both teams struggle from the floor, the Beavers shot just 3-10, with all three makes coming from downtown, and WSC shot 4-15. The Beavers outscored the Wildcats 10-9 in the frame to take a 31-27 lead into the locker room.
The third quarter was much like the first quarter in that the Beavers found the hot shooting hand. They shot an even 50% while the Wildcats struggled again in the quarter.
Starting the quarter on a 9-0 run saw the Bemidji State lead balloon to 13. WSC was able to make up some ground before the end of the period but still trailed at the end of three 48-39.
For the first 4:15 of the final quarter, the Wildcats found a groove offensively as an 11-2 run was sparked to tie the game at 50. The Wildcats scored 19 points in the fourth, 10 of which came at the free throw line. WSC made the crucial free throws when it mattered most.
This quarter also saw the turnovers for Bemidji State really pile up, an issue that was prevalent all game. Nine turnovers in the frame, including one on the final possession, ultimately doomed the Beavers as WSC completes the 58-55 comeback win on Senior Day.
Senior Maya Fitzpatrick was a star for the Wildcats, finishing with 19 points and playing a great brand of defense which generated a pair of steals.
“Four years here at Wayne provides a lot of time to grow and change into someone you want to be,” Fitzpatrick said. “ I’m thankful WSC gave me the opportunity to do that because I really like the person and leader I‘ve grown into.
The other seniors who played all scored points. Tate Norblade had eight, Carsyn Boswell put six into the effort and Delaney Clark finished with five. Senior guard Abby Kopecky didn’t play due to injury but was still recognized and honored.
Both the men and women will finish the regular season against the Minot State Beavers on Saturday, Feb. 22 and await their placement for the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Tournament.
