January 29, 2022 | by Taylor Pill

LEAD

WATERTOWN, Wis. -- The Sabercats came tantalizingly close tonight, but they fell down the stretch 62-50 to Martin Luther College in front of a standing-room-only crowd on the MBU Campus.

Callie Morrison came close to extending her 20-points streak to eight games but the Knights held the standout senior to just 19 on the night. Katelyn Morrison had 18 points as the Sabercats almost reversed a 55-80 loss from a couple of weeks ago.

OVERVIEW

• Result: Maranatha 50-62 Martin Luther
• Venue: Main Gymnasium, Maranatha Baptist University
• Location: Watertown, Wis.
• Attendance: 449
• Records: MBU (3-8), MLC (5-13

STORY 

The first half was high energy, as the fans seemingly held their own game of vocalizing support for the two teams. Maranatha couldn't get anything to fall until midway through the first quarter, but they weathered that storm to finish all square at nine apiece after 10 minutes.

Both teams found their range a little better in the second quarter, as both sides broke double digits in a tight-knit second act. The Knights kept Callie Morrison to just 4 points in the first half, limiting the senior to shooting just 2-8 from the field and 0-1 from downtown. Katelyn Morrison led the Sabercats with nine points and Emma Nelson led Martin Luther with eight, and going into halftime, the fans' intensity matched that of the contest - the teams went into the locker rooms in a battle that Martin Luther was leading 24-25.

Martin Luther slowly built a lead in the third quarter, winning the 10-minute stretch to go into the fourth quarter with a six-point lead. 

This one was going to be close.

Callie infused new life the already boistrous crowd by scoring nine points in just 80 seconds midway through the fourth to give Maranatha their first lead in a while. But the Sabercats' surge stopped there. Down the stretch, the shots fell just off the mark as Martin Luther pulled away to close out a hard-earned 62-50 win.

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Maranatha Starters: 3- C. Morrison, 13- Teachout, 25- K. Morrison, 30- L. Brown, 32- J. Brown // Martin Luther starters: 2- Platzer, 4- Paulsen, 12- Heckendorf, 22- Nelson, 44- Rothfuss

STATS

• Callie: 19 PTS, 10 REB, 3 STL
• Katelyn: 18 PTS, 1 REB, 3 AST
• Tierney Bosnyak: 6 PTS, 4 REB
• Lauren Paulsen: 15 PTS, 12 REB, 4 AST for Martin Luther
• Last time: Martin Luther defeated Maranatha 80-55 on January 11
• Series: Martin Luther leads the series 4-2

OPPONENTS

• Martin Luther competes in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (NCAA DIII)
• Martin Luther finished the 2020-21 season with a 3-10 record and a first-round loss in the UMAC Tournament

NEXT

The Sabercats host North Central on Tuesday night at 5:00 p.m. Follow at mbusabercats.com/schedule.