The Huskies used second-half shooting to get past Winona State on Sunday

HOUGHTON, Mich. – The Michigan Tech women’s basketball team scored 48 points in the second half, overcoming a 19-point first quarter deficit to close the non-conference portion of the schedule with a 71-66 win over Winona State in SDC on Sunday afternoon Complete high school.

The Huskies had four players finish with double-digit points, led by the first-year guard Kendall Steadfasther third double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. center Maja Kozlowska recorded her second consecutive career high by scoring 15 points in 24 minutes and grabbing a remarkable five offensive rebounds.

Veteran Guard Isabella Lenz had a balanced game with 12 points, seven rebounds and a team-leading four assists and three blocks. Freshman guard Ella Mason They rounded out the Huskies’ double-digit scorers with 11 points, seven of them in the final quarter of the game.

The Black & Gold finish the non-conference slate with an overall record of 3-5, while Winona State falls to 4-3.

“We didn’t play like ourselves at all in the first half and had a lot of defensive mishaps,” Tech head coach Sam Clayton said. “It was great to see that we were able to turn things around at half-time. We looked like a completely different team in the second half and Ella deserves a lot of credit – she hit some great shots for us in the second half.”

“Kendall had a huge rebound for us late in the offense that changed the momentum of the game and kind of rattled them. So many young players stepped up for us and I’m really proud of them. Bella did great for us defensively and was just solid for all of us.

The Huskies left the halftime break trailing the Warriors 32-23 after shooting just 25 percent from the field in the first two quarters. Winona State maintained a double-digit lead through the first five minutes of the third period before the Huskies hit two 3-pointers Emma Anderson and then Alyssa Wypych with a layup by Standfest that cut the Warriors’ lead (45-38) with 3:59 left in the quarter.

Anderson scored two more goals down the stretch, with first-years Steady and Ella Mason After the Warriors scored three points near the end of the quarter, it became a one-possession game (49-46).

Michigan Tech followed its 23-point third quarter (58.8 percent from the field) with a 25-point final quarter on six of 10 from the field, including 11 of 14 from the charity stripe.

Kozlowska scored the Huskies’ first six points in the final frame with back-to-back layups and two free throws, tying the game at 52-5 before Mason pushed all the way to the foul line to increase the score to 54-52 at the 7:36 mark two free throws.

The young core of Standfest, Wypych and Mason scored the next 12 points for the Black & Gold with a layup by Wypych at 58 seconds, giving the Black & Gold a 66-64 lead.

The Warriors missed a layup on the ensuing play, which was reflected in foul throws from Lenz with 15 seconds left in the game, making it 67-64, with Standfest grabbing an offensive rebound that sent them to the foul line, making one of two goals with 13 seconds Before the end it was a four-point affair.

Lenz hit three of four free throws in the final seconds, giving the Huskies a 71-66 lead and ending the weekend with a win.

“We came out super flat in the first half and we know that,” Lenz added. “I think we played a lot better in the second half and we saw a lot of players step up – Ella hit some big shots and we played a lot better in the second half.”

Hailey Markworth led the Warriors with 15 points and nine rebounds. Saide Jarmolowicz (14 points) and Mattie Schimenz (14 points) also scored in double figures.

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Staying at home, Michigan Tech will open GLIAC play next week, welcoming Parkside on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. before a matinee against Purdue Northwest on Saturday at noon.