The victory was anything but handed to the Tommies (20-0 overall, 14-0 MIAC), who finished the first quarter down by seven and the second quarter tied with the Wildcats (13-8 overall, 7-7 MIAC).
“We always stick with that confidence that we’re gonna win or we’re gonna find a way to win,” Langer said.
Still without a loss, Langer explained that the team’s “one day at a time” mentality has kept them successful.
“No, we didn’t think we were gonna get to February and be undefeated,” Langer said, “but I think we took it one game at a time and every single game we came in with confidence and knowing at each step that we could come out with a win.”
“And I think that’s the big thing,” head coach Ruth Sinn added. “We’re not outcome based; we’re process based. And so right now … the question is ‘How do we get better? How do we improve? What are the challenges in front of us and how do we overcome those, collectively?’”
After playing catch-up with an aggressive Wildcats offense, forward Lauren Fischer hit a final-second jump shot to tie the score 27-27 at halftime.
“We talk all the time about how we don’t want to give up plays like that, at the last possession, because then that gives (our opponents) momentum,” Fischer explained. “So my shot gave us a swing of momentum for the second half.”
Fischer also played a large role in the Tommie defense with 14 total rebounds.
Guard Paige Gernes added that, after struggling with St. Kate’s speed, a small offensive adjustment made a big difference for the team.
“We weren’t pushing the floor very well to beat them up the floor,” Gernes said, “so we really focused on getting higher outlets so that we could get into our offense earlier and get more movement.
St. Thomas dominated the fourth quarter with multiple consequent defensive stops and relentless inside shooting until they eventually wore down their cross-town rivals.
“We’ve really gotten used to (wearing teams down) at the end of the clock,” Sinn said. “I mean, we’re rated excellent in that category. There’s trust among our team that allows us to execute in the fourth quarter.”
The undefeated Tommies will take on Luther Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in Decorah, Iowa.
Lauren Andrego can be reached at lauren.andrego@stthomas.edu.