BRUINS RALLY IN FOURTH QUARTER FOR WIN

Fargo South staged a major rally in the fourth quarter on Tuesday night, and came away with a 54-45 victory over Grand Forks Red River, the only team to defeat the Bruins this season in the EDC. Early on, it looked as though it would be a repeat of the first meeting between the two teams when the Riders jumped out to a huge lead and maintained that lead the entire game in the Bruins loss in Grand Forks. Tuesday, the Riders again jumped out to a big lead and led 9-0 in part due to a pair of early three pointers from Ann Arnason and Ashley Nelson. Kayle Prigge also got loose inside for a pair of baskets. For South, Jenna Lee scored the only field goal of the quarter and the Bruins trailed 13-4 after one quarter. In the second, the Bruins started to chip away at the lead. The perimeter game got going for South as McKenzie Mehlisch scored on an inside move and also a driving basket, while Cammi Greenheck dropped in a pair of perimeter shots as well. Julie Hageman and Joslynn Tharaldson each knocked down freethrows, and by halftime, despite not playing great basketball, the Bruins were hanging around, trailing by only a 22-20 score. The Riders came out and started the second half just like the first though, and rebuilt their lead. Nora Narloch was able to score on a pair of driving baskets, and Kayla Prigge scored inside again. The Riders outscored South 10-2 to start the second half, and built a 32-22 lead, forcing the Bruins to call time out. The teams exchanged baskets again before South finally got things going. Lindsay Sauvageau hit a long two pointer to cut the lead back to 8 points at 34-26, but the Riders answered with a pair of freethrows by Amy Holtan to make it 36-26 with just over a minute to play in the third quarter. That's when things began to take a turn for the positive for South. With the game slipping out of their hands, the Bruins rose to the challenge and put together one of their best 9 minute stretches of the season and played a near perfect fourth quarter. Cammi Greenheck started the comeback by putting in an offensive rebound to make it 36-28 - that play seemed to spark the Bruins and they played with much more energy the rest of the game. After a defensive stop, the Bruins pushed the ball down the floor with time running out in the corner and took a tough shot, but Joslynn Tharaldson grabbed the offensive rebound and put back up a shot right as the quarter buzzer sounded. Jos was fouled on the play, and made both freethrows with no time showing to make it a 36-30 game heading into the fourth. That momentum carried over into the fourth. A huge play in the game came on the opening possession when Cammi Greenheck stole the ball from the Riders, then pushed ahead to Lindsay Sauvageau who was fouled by Nora Narloch, her fourth foul. Lindsay made both freethrows, cutting the lead to 36-32, and the Riders were forced to take Narloch out of the game, and the Bruins definitely capitalized. The Bruins forced another turnover on the next possession, and on offense, McKenzie Mehlisch drove the lane for a strong basket making it 36-34. The hot streak continued as on the next possession Cammi Greenheck pulled up just inside the three point line and nailed a shot, tying the game at 36-36, forcing a Rider timeout. It looked as though the Riders might stem the tide though, as Ashley Nelson hit another three pointer, giving Red River a 39-36 lead. The Bruins answered right back though. Joslynn Tharaldson hit a tough inside basket, making it 39-38, then on the next trip down drilled a three pointer to give South their first lead at 41-39. Joslynn then forced a turnover on defense, and that led to another trip to the freethrow line for McKenzie Mehlisch, who made one of two for a 42-39 lead. The Riders then answered back with 4 straight points to regain the lead at 45-44 with just over 3 minutes left in the game, but South again had the answer. Cammi Greenheck nailed a three pointer to give South the lead 47-45, then on the next possession, Jenna Lee followed with a three pointer of her own to give South a 50-45 lead. The Bruins, playing with the adrenaline that a major comeback always brings, made two big stops on defense to keep that lead, including a Sauvageau steal, and a near 30 second violation that resulted in a very difficult Rider shot attempt with just over 30 seconds to play. The Bruins rebounded, and the Riders were forced to foul and McKenzie Mehlisch iced the win with a pair of clutch freethows, pushing the lead to 52-45. South forced another turnover and Cammi Greenheck finished off the scoring with a pair of freethows to make it the final 54-45 score. South was again balanced in scoring, as Joslynn Tharaldson scored 14, Cammi Greenheck 13, and McKenzie Mehlisch 12. The win moves South to 12-1 in the EDC and 13-2 overall. South has now not lost a home EDC game since October of 2001. Next action for South is Friday when they travel to Devils Lake for a big two point game.

See the complete boxscore here

Boxscore:
Fargo South: Mehlisch 4 4-8 12, Sauvageau 2 2-2 6, Greenheck 5 2-2 13, Lee 3 0-0 7, Tharaldson 4 5-6 14, Hageman 0 2-2 2, ; Totals 18 15-20 54, Three point goals: Lee, Greenheck, Tharaldson

Red River: Arnason 2 2-2 7, Narloch 2 0-0 4, Nelson 2 0-0 6, Holtan 3 3-3 9, Prigge 6 2-3 14, Howes 2 1-2 5; Totals: 17 8-10 45, Three point goals: Nelson 2, Arnason

Fouled out: none; Total Fouls: South 11, RR 14; Rebounds: South 27(Tharaldson 10), RR 30(Holtan 8), Steals: South 11(Mehlisch 4), RR 6, Turnovers: South 9, RR 17; Assists: South 12(Mehlisch 5) JV game: Red River 44 - South 31