DECORAH, Iowa – Women's basketball went on the road and came away with a gritty 68-63 win over Luther College on Wednesday, Jan. 28 in the final American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) regular season meeting between these teams.
 
Luther led by as many as 10 points in both halves, but Wartburg's defense along with 35 combined points from Katie Boulanger and Grace Hennessy led the comeback for the Knights.
 
With today's win Bob Amsberry is now at 400 career wins during his tenure at Wartburg. He is already the winningest coach in program history and currently ranks 20^th among active Division III coaches in all-time wins (531).

 
Game Summary

• First Half
  • First Quarter
    • Emma Townsley and Corrie Harrison started the scoring for Wartburg to put the Knights in front 4-3 early
    • After two early missed shots Luther started the game 4-4 from the field, including 3-3 from three-point range to take an 11-6 lead over the Knights midway through the first quarter
    • A score in the paint from Katie Boulanger and a three pointer from Katelyn Aden brought the Knights back within three points, but Luther answered with a 9-2 run to give the Norse a 23-13 lead with two minutes left in the first
      • Both Boulanger and Grace Hennessy sunk three pointer in the final minute of the first quarter to cut the lead to 26-19
  • Second Quarter
    • Lauren Donlea opened the second with a three pointer from the top of the key followed by a bucket from Boulanger to cute the Luther lead to 26-24 after one minute
    • The Knights took a 29-28 lead with 7:19 left in the half after a three pointer from Townsley and a layup from Harrison
    • Scores from Aden and Lauren Golinghorst in the paint put the Knights in front 34-30 with just over four minutes left in the half
      • The Norse scored the final six points of the first half to take a 36-34 lead into halftime
• Second Half
  • Third Quarter
    • The Knights opened the second half on a 7-0 run following scores in the paint from Townsley and Boulanger along with a three pointer from Hennessy to put the Knights back in front 41-36
    • Luther responded with a 7-2 run that tied the game up at 43-43 with 4:26 left in the third
      • The Norse built a 50-45 lead with 2:32 left in the third
    • Harrison scored four points in the final minutes of the third, but Wartburg trailed headed to the fourth quarter 54-49
  • Fourth Quarter
    • The Norse scored the first four points of the fourth to take a 58-49 lead with eight and a half minutes left to play
    • Scores from Laynee Hogan and Harrison cut the Luther lead to 58-53 with just over six minutes remaining
      • Hennessy drilled a three pointer to cut the lead to two points, but the Norse answered with a jumper on the other end to make the score 60-56
    • Following Hogan's third block on the defensive end, Boulanger made her second-straight jumper to tie the game at 60-60 with 3:30 left to play
    • Following a timeout, Hennessy made a clutch catch and shoot three pointer to put the Knights ahead 63-60 with 1:43 remaining
    • Donlea and Boulanger each scored at the free throw line to give Wartburg a 66-60 lead with 21 seconds to play
      • Luther made a three pointer the next possession, but Boulanger made two more free throws to secure a gritty 68-63 win on the road for the Knights

 
Top Performers

• Katie Boulanger
  • 21 points
  • Three rebounds
  • Two steals
  • One assist
  • One block
• Grace Hennessy
  • 14 points
  • One rebound
  • One assist
• Corrie Harrison
  • 10 points
  • Seven rebounds
  • Two assists
  • One steal

 
Notes/Streaks

• Wartburg has now won 17-straight games over Luther
  • Closes regular season A-R-C series with a 53-31 advantage all-time (A-R-C/IIAC only)
• Amsberry has earned career win number 400 at Wartburg
  • Now has 531 all time, which ranks 20^th among active Division III coaches
• Sixth 20 or more-point performance for Boulanger this season
• Fifth time this season with four or more three pointers made for Hennessy
• Hogan recorded her career high in blocks for the third time this season today (three)
• Harrison had recorded five rebounds in nine out of 11 games played this season
• Wartburg dominated points in the paint 34-12 and the offensive glass 11-3
• Season lows for the Knights in total team assists (six) and total team steals (five)

 
Next Time Out
The Knights are back in action on Saturday, Jan. 31 at 2 p.m. against Loras inside Levick Arena.