The Minneapolis girls basketball team fought and clawed all night, however a two point fourth quarter doomed the Lady Lions in a 44-30 loss at Beloit on Monday night.
The game was played on Monday night due this game being scheduled for Friday, Jan. 17, however, the game was postponed due to inclement weather.
Neither team shot the ball great in the first quarter–with the exception of Beloit’s Jessica Meier. The Trojan Senior made two 3-pointers to open up the lead over Minneapolis 12-6 after one.
The Lady Lions kept within distance of Beloit in the second quarter, only trailing 21-16 at the break.
The third quarter was one of runs for both teams. Minneapolis came out of the locker room red hot in the third stanza as both Zoie Shupe and Kersti Nelson struck from distance. The barrage out of the locker room actually gave Minneapolis two separate leads in the third quarter–one by one point, followed by its largest lead of the game, 26-23 midway through the third.
That would be the final time the Lady Lions had the lead, though. Beloit held Minneapolis to just two points in the final quarter and finished the game on a 21-4 extended run to comfortably coast to a win.
Beloit (8-5, 5-1 NCAA) was led by Meier with 15 points on the game and three 3-pointers.
Minneapolis (4-10, 1-5 NCAA) saw two scorers reach double-figures in both Nelson and Shupe. The two combined for 12 and 11 points, each in the loss.
Minneapolis has another rivalry showdown on Friday, this time hosting Sacred Heart.
Beloit Boys 70, MINNEAPOLIS 55
Beloit blazed out to a 39-20 lead midway through the second quarter in the boys game, as Trojan, Senior, Carson Cox scored 11 points on three 3-pointers in the first half.
It appeared that Beloit would make quick work of the Lions on Monday night.
However, Minneapolis battled at the end of the period, going on an 8-0 run to end the half and trailed 39-28 at halftime.
The run continued for Minneapolis in to the second half, as the Lions’ 1-2-2 zone momentarily gave the Beloit offense issues. Minneapolis got the lead down to just six points at two different points in the third.
However, Vincent Palen of Beloit would find the foul line 16 times on Monday night and never allowed the Lions to get any closer as the Trojan, Senior went 15-16 from the free-throw line.
Beloit (10-3, 4-2 NCAA) wins not just a crucial league game but also a crucial game in the 3A Beloit Substate, as both teams are apart of the postseason tournament field and were only a game in-between each other coming in to Monday.
Palen led Beloit with 27 points. Cox scored 22 on five 3-point makes, while Bryce Mason scored 12 points in the win.
Minneapolis (9-5, 3-3 NCAA) battled back after getting down by 19 points, but was never able to climb the hump against Beloit. Trent Moeckel scored a season-best 17 points with two 3-pointers in the loss. Spencer Davidson added in 14 points.
Minneapolis next faces Sacred Heart on Friday. Pregame coverage of the league double-header begins at 5:45 p.m. on Salina radio station, 92.7 The New Zoo.
