Peitz piles up career numbers in victory at Midland
By Taylor Mueller, Sports Information Assistant
FREMONT, Neb. – The Concordia Bulldogs topped the Midland Warriors 82-74 to notch their seventh straight GPAC victory while continuing their domination of Midland with their 10th straight win over the warriors.
Concordia (15-3, 9-1 GPAC), now 43-7 in their last 50 conference games, rode the 5-foot-10 frame of junior guard Tracy Peitz who had a monster night, finishing the night with a career high 26 points and 12 rebounds to go along with five steals and two assists.
“Tracy was just dominant,” head coach Drew Olson said.
Concordia came out guns a blazing, connecting on five of their first seven shots to take an early 13-4 lead. Despite not being able to score in transition, the Bulldogs got a lot of help from their bench who pitched in with 15 points. The Bulldogs struggled to control the boards, however, and conceded 20 rebounds to the warriors while grabbing just 14 themselves.
“In the first half we jumped on them early but Midland really outplayed us the next 15-16 minutes,” Olson said. “Even though we were up five at half, they were dominant on the boards and getting easy looks. In the second half I knew we were going to have to find ways to score. I'm really proud of that group that led us.”
After guard Bailey Morris left with an injury late in the second half, the Bulldogs looked for other means of scoring to gain momentum back in the second half. The teams traded baskets for the first five minutes of the half with neither team gaining an advantage.
Finally, after Peitz scored a layup to push the Bulldog lead to 49-43, sophomore guard Taylor Wissing blocked a Midland 3-point attempt at the other end which led to another Peitz layup and sparked an 8-3 Bulldog run to extend the lead to 57-46. The Bulldogs controlled the game from there, mounting a lead as large as 14 points with 3:30 left to play.
Injury struck the Bulldogs again, however, when senior All-American guard Kristen Conahan exited the game after a collision with a Midland player. Despite the loss of another star, the Bulldogs were able to hold their own and outgun the Warriors.
“It was still a six-seven point game when Connie went down,” Olson said. “I thought that group we had out there definitely outplayed Midland and helped us extend the lead. Obviously we have to keep building and keep developing our depth. We're going to continue to find ways to win.”
Junior forward Ashley Kuntz finished her big night with 16 points, while freshman forward Becky Mueller added 16 points of her own to go along with eight boards. Junior guard Kesey Hizer pitched in with 10 points.
“Our role players did a really nice job,” Olson said. “Kelsey (Hizer) had a great game overall and Ashley (Kuntz) and Becky (Mueller) were great inside, even against taller posts. It was a really, really good win.”
Concordia will travel to Orange City, Iowa, to take on undefeated and second-ranked Northwestern College (16-0, 8-0 GPAC) on Saturday in what has been tabbed the NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball Game of the Week. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.
