MOUNT VERNON, Iowa — Guard Kelly Brandenburg’s 15 points pushed the St. Thomas women’s basketball team past Cornell College (Iowa) 53-52 Saturday in a second-round NCAA tournament game at the Small Multi-Sport Center.
The unranked Tommies (24-5) defeated the No. 12-ranked Rams (25-2) to advance to the Sweet 16.
Coach Ruth Sinn said she is proud of the team’s performance despite areas that didn’t go as planned.
“It was an exciting, exciting game,” Sinn said. “There were a lot of things not going our way: fouls, missed shots. They kept looking at what do they have control over, what’s the next thing that they have to do.”
Forward Anna Smith started her team off when she made an easy two-point shot, giving the Tommies a 7-2 lead. Smith had five rebounds on the night.
Forward Taylor Young showed her defensive aggression when she stole the ball, assisting Brandenburg for two more points and slicing the Rams’ lead to 13-12.
After getting checked for an injury, Brandenburg returned to the court to sink a three, putting the Tommies ahead 22-17.
Brandenburg said each win is a stepping stone to the national title.
“Any win just gets us closer to the end,” Brandenburg said. “These close games really make you want it more.”
After Brandenburg’s three, guard Kellie Ring drove to the hoop to score an easy two points, giving St. Thomas a 24-21 advantage. Ring racked up 10 points on the night.
Forward Alyssa Favilla helped level the score at 25 heading into halftime when she made one of her two free throws.
Ring said she is happy with the win although the team’s performance wasn’t up to par.
“It was a battle out there, but we won so that’s all that matters,” Ring said. “We’re not the biggest team, but we pushed through and found a way to win.”
Ring carried her intensity over from from the first half when she flipped the ball in for an easy score to tie the game at 31.
Guard Carley Emery brought her own energy to the court when she drained a three, giving the Tommies a 42-40 lead.
Helping secure St. Thomas’ lead, guard Jenna Dockter went two-for-two from the line, taking the reins with a 44-42 score.
Ring said the Rams’ fans fueled the Tommies’ energy.
“At a lot of the games, there’s no energy in the gym, it’s like dead,” Ring said. “We were like ‘it’s going to be crazy in here. We have to create our own energy and hush the crowd.’”
Despite the Rams firing back, Brandenburg took an easy jumper to take the lead once again, the score notched at 49-47. Dockter helped keep the team rolling when she drove to the hoop for a shot and helped the Tommies maintain a 51-47 lead.
Ram forward Kellie Kuzmanic gave her team a fighting chance she drained a three to cut St. Thomas’ lead to 53-52.
With seconds left on the clock, Cornell guard Rikki Mulloy launched a 3-pointer, only to miss and Ring grabbed the board, solidifying the Tommies one-point thrilling victory.
Sinn said the team needs to rest up before the Sweet 16 where they will face No. 2-ranked Hope College (Mich.) at 5 p.m. Friday, March 8 in Whitewater, Wisc. The Flying Dutch have a 26-1 record.
“Right now, we just need to take some time off. We need to rest our legs. We gotta get them back,” Sinn said. “We’re just excited to be here. We’re going to make the most of this opportunity.”
Sean Crotty can be reached at crot0230@stthomas.edu.