Mustangs advance to 14th-Straight Second-Round
Story by Nikki Sherrill, NAIA Media Coordinator
SIOUX CITY, Iowa – (Box Score) The 35th all-time national championship victory for Morningside came after defeating No. 6 Siena Heights (Mich.) in the first-round of the 2017 NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball National Championship, 90-73. The Mustangs are back into the second-round for the 14th-straight postseason and now sit at 35-11 in the event.
Now at 24-8, Morningside earns another game in Sioux City, Iowa, and will tip tomorrow night at 7 p.m. with a chance to excel into the quarterfinals on the line. An at-large qualifier out of the Great Plains Athletic Conference, Morningside takes on No. 2 College of the Ozarks (Mo.) (27-4) on Friday. The Bobcats easily got by No. 7 Reinhardt (Ga.) (27-6) earlier in the day.
Morningside was able to pull away quickly from Siena Heights, as they outscored the Saints in three quarters with their largest lead coming at the 6:29 mark in the fourth quarter when the Mustangs ran away with a 23-point lead. Although the score was tied three different times and five lead changes ensued, Morningside seemed to control the tempo the majority of the game. The Mustangs led the fast-break charge of the game, earning nine points off speed compared to the zero points the Saints had on breakaways. Morningside also racked up the points and led statistically in both points off turnovers (19) and points in the paint (40).
The Mustangs had two standouts in the contest, with junior Madison Braun cashing in on a game-high 29 points and senior Lexi Ackerman netting 23 of her own points. The two combined for over half of the team’s total in the game. From behind the arc, Morningside went only 9-of-23 (.391), but cashed in on free-throws hitting 19-of-27.
Even without the score being in the Saints’ favor, Siena Heights locked down defensively as they out-rebounded the Mustangs 51-36. Led by April Watson who pulled down a game-high 17 rebounds, Siena Heights found momentum under the basket. Watson also finished the game with a team-high 19 points to end her career for the Saints.
In its fourth appearance at the national championship, Siena Heights now holds a 3-3 all-time record in Sioux City. 2014 was the last time the Saints advanced into the second-round, where they lost to St. Francis (Ind.), 83-59.
