Late run carries WIAC co-leading Falcons past Pioneers, 75-59

PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – Freshman guard Morgan Horstman (Bangor) scored a team-high 17 points and grabbed six rebounds, but conference-leading UW-River Falls pulled away from host UW-Platteville late in the second half to spoil the Pioneers' annual Defend the Rack Breast Cancer Awareness Game Saturday night at Bo Ryan Court.

The 15th-ranked Falcons used a 17-4 run midway through the second half to run away with a 75-59 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference victory and remain in a first-place tie.

UW-River Falls improved to 18-4 overall and 10-2 in the WIAC, keeping pace with fellow league-leader UW-Oshkosh (19-4, 10-2 WIAC), which was a 57-44 winner over UW-La Crosse on Saturday.

Senior guard Richell Mehus made all five three-pointers she attempted in the game and finished with a game-high 23 points. She also passed out a co-team-high seven assists. Junior point guard Brynn Liljander added 14 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the winners.

Senior Elisa Bilderback (Platteville) chipped in 13 points and four rebounds in a losing effort for Coach Megan Wilson's Pioneers. Junior Morgan Hartman (Rochester, Minn./Century) and freshman center Allison Prestegaard (Amboy, Ill./Ashton-Franklin Center) scored six points apiece. Hartman also had a team-high five assists and four rebounds.

The Falcons jumped out to a quick 13-4 start, but the Pioneers battled back to take a 19-18 lead on a Bilderback free throw with 1:13 left in the opening quarter.

Bilderback made two more free throws a minute into the second quarter, then Hartman swished a triple from the wing and a Bilderback jumper on the ensuing possession gave UW-Platteville a 26-22 lead with 7:43 left in the half.

After the teams traded three-pointers, UWRF went on a 10-2 run to take a 37-31 lead on a Liljander 3-pointer with 31 seconds left in the half, but Hartman answered with a long triple of her own just before the halftime buzzer to make it a three-point game at intermission.

The Falcons started the second half on a 9-2 run to open up a 10-point lead at 46-36, but the Pioneers whittled away at the double-digit deficit and pulled within four at 50-46 with 3:19 left in the third on back-to-back 3-pointers by Hortsman and freshman Kassie Buchholz (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glen Bard West).

River Falls took off from there, outscoring the Pioneers 17-4 over the next eight minutes to build a commanding 67-50 lead. Only freshman Emma Noel (Dubuque, Iowa/Senior) and Hortsman scored during the stretch for UW-Platteville.

The Falcons shot 50 percent (15-for-30) from the field in the second half, including 5 of 11 from behind the arc, to outscore the Pioneers 38-25 in the final 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, the Pioneers shot just 29 percent (9-for-31) in the second half, after shooting 41 percent (13-for-32) in the first two quarters of play.

The Pioneers will return to action Wednesday at 17th-ranked UW-Stevens Point (17-6, 8-4 WIAC). The Pointers are coming off a 59-57 loss at UW-Eau Claire (11-12, 6-6) on Saturday.

Written by: Jason Nihles, UW-Platteville Sports Information Assistant