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CLOUDY Temp: 39 °F Wind: SSE at 4 mph Wednesday, April 2, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend March 14, 2003 SOU�s Sara Marks (31) tries to drive past Sioux Falls' Krista Orsack. Raiders lose heartbreaker in opening round Sioux Falls rallies back from as many as 24 points to eliminate SOU By BARRY POE for the Mail Tribune SIOUX CITY, Iowa — It took a tremendous rally, but Sioux Falls became the fourth Great Plains Athletic Conference team to make the second round of the NAIA Division II women’s basketball tournament, eliminating Southern Oregon University 83-82 in the final first-round game Thursday night at Sioux City Auditorium. The 13th-ranked Cougars trailed by as many as 24 points in the first half and 18 at intermission, but staged an incredible comeback to join fellow GPAC schools Concordia, Hastings and Dakota Wesleyan in the second round. For Cascade Conference champion Southern Oregon, it was a bitter pill to swallow. The Raiders, who were still ahead by 20 points with 14 minutes left in the game, appeared poised to become the second lower-seeded team of the tournament to knock off a higher-seeded foe. After making seven 3-pointers in the first half, Southern Oregon settled for just two in the second half. As a team, the Raiders shot only 28.6 percent in the second half. Coach Kevin Wilson, however, had a different take on things. "That was a shameful disgrace of officiating," said a visibly upset Wilson. "To take the game out of the hands of the players was shameful. Just shameful. That’s all I’ve got to say." The tone of the game actually turned when the officials had a long discussion after calling a foul with just over 14 minutes left. It appeared that the coaches disagreed on who the foul should have been whistled on, prompting the long delay. After that, momentum swung in Sioux Falls’ direction. "They called the foul on No. 20, which would have been her third, but their coach said it should have been on No. 31 and I disagreed," said Sioux Falls Coach Katie Dailey. "One of the officials said his partner flashed him the numbers three and one. "Whatever happened, Steph Austin, one of my senior players, did a good job of pulling the team together during that delay and things turned around." "They called a foul on the wrong person," said Southern Oregon’s Wilson. "They blew it. It was shameful." Sioux Falls began chipping away at the huge deficit and took its first lead since the early going, 75-73, on a conventional 3-point play by Courtney Farrell with 3:52 remaining. The Cougars then stretched the lead to five points before Southern Oregon fought back, eventually going in front 82-81 on a 3-pointer by Lindsey Hilaire with 13 ticks remaining. Lindsey Schneiderman, who came off the bench to fire in a game-high 27 points, made it 83-82 with two foul shots following a controversial call with 4.3 seconds remaining. Schneiderman appeared to charge into Raider post Ashley Nunley on the baseline five feet from the basket, but instead of an offensive foul, Nunley was called for blocking, setting up the two game-clinching free throws. Southern Oregon’s Sara Marks then drove the length of the floor, but missed an off-balance shot as the buzzer sounded. Southern Oregon led 51-33 after a nearly flawless first half and had its biggest lead of 49-24 with 2:54 left before intermission. "We talked at halftime that nobody saw the real USF out there in the first half," said Dailey, a former Jefferson, S.D., prep star. "We told them not to give up. "Our bench did a great job. What can you say about Lindsey Schneiderman coming off the bench to score 27 points?" Schneiderman, a 5-10 junior from Brandon, S.D., converted 12 of 13 free throws and raked down a team-high eight rebounds. Farrell scored 17 points, while Austin had 14 points and seven caroms. Kara Magee-Arick, one of five senior starters for Southern Oregon, tallied 26 points. Adrienne Dolezal was next in line with 18 points, while Marks contributed 15 points, six rebounds and six assists, and Ashley Nunley 10 points and nine rebounds. Southern Oregon was whistled for 24 fouls and Sioux Falls 14. The Cougars made all but two of their 22 free throw attempts. Sioux Falls, now 22-8, plays Cedarville (Ohio) at 9:15 tonight. Southern Oregon closed its season with a 22-10 record, but was 17-3 in its last 20 games. Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search M Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S