NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The Carleton College women's basketball team earned arguably its biggest win in 14 years as the Knights defeated MIAC-leading Augsburg University, 59-49, at West Gym. The upset ended Augsburg's 13-game overall and MIAC winning streak, and represented the Auggies' first conference loss this season.
 
"Today's game was a total team effort on both ends of the court," said Carleton head coach Tammy Metcalf-Filzen. "We have seen glimpses of this kind of cohesive play throughout the season, but today we were able to put together four quarters. I am really proud of their effort. We'll enjoy this for a day and get back to work on Monday."
 
While Jasmine Choi (So./Maple Grove, Minn./Osseo) fell just short of her third-straight 20-point game, she may have had her most impressive outing of the season, putting up her first career double-double with 19 points and a career-high 14 rebounds. She went 8-of-12 from the field and 3-for-4 at the line.
 
Choi was joined in double figures by Emma Henry (So./Prior Lake, Minn./Academy of Holy Angels), who hit 6-of-10 shots and had a 15-point afternoon.
 
Even though the last matchup between the two teams yielded a lopsided 72-45 victory for Augsburg, it was clear from the outset that this contest could be different.
 
Carleton (6-12, 5-10 MIAC) jumped out to a 7-5 lead over the Auggies (13-4, 13-1 MIAC) on the back of four quick points from Henry. She and Choi finished the first quarter with seven points apiece, accounting for all of the Knights' scoring during the period. Augsburg held a slim 15-14 lead after the first quarter.
 
Carleton was held to just four points during the second quarter by the third-stingiest defense in the MIAC, but the Knights managed to limit Augsburg to only nine points in the stanza. The visitors' largest lead of the day came as they took a 24-18 lead into halftime.
 
Carleton limited Augsburg—owner of one of the most efficient offense's in the conference—to only 28.1 percent (9-of-32) shooting in the first half. However, the Knights were unable to get rolling themselves, shooting 25 percent 8-of-32) before intermission.
 
Four quick points from the Knights to open the third quarter brought the hosts to within two, and five possessions later, a free throw from Bella Thomas (Fy./Minneapolis, Minn./De La Selle) knotted the game at 25-25, marking the contest's first tie since the opening quarter. Three minutes later, a Thomas' layup gave the Knights a 29-28 lead, their first advantage of the second half. She finished with five points, all of them coming during the third quarter.
 
Augsburg responded to the Knights' surge with a mini 6-0 run of its own, before Carleton re-gained the lead with a 7-0 spurt. Augsburg's Anja Smith sent the teams into the final period deadlocked at 36-36 after hitting a layup right before the end of the quarter.
 
Carleton began the fourth quarter by scoring on its first two trips down the floor to take a 40-38 advantage. Over the next five minutes, the lead changed hands twice more, before a layup by Margie Clauss (So./Minneapolis, Minn./Washburn)—who scored all five of her points in the final period—gave the Knights some breathing room. The 49-44 advantage with less than four minutes remaining represented Carleton's largest lead up to that point.
 
Augsburg scored on its next possession to pull within three points as the clock ticked under three minutes.
 
Choi knocked down a jumper in the lane and came up with back-to-back steals. Isabelle Henry (So./Prior Lake, Minn./Academy of Holy Angels) then hit a triple from the corner with 1:18 remaining to put the Knights up, 55-46. The deep ball, Carleton's only 3-pointer of the game, proved to be the dagger, as Augsburg was unable to overcome the nine-point deficit in the final minute of play.
 
Carleton point guard Jill Yanai (Sr./Glendale, Calif./Glendale) only had six points, but she still filled the stat sheet with five assists, four steals, and four rebounds.
 
Carleton shot only 38 percent in the game but connected at a 54 percent clip in the second half. The Knights held the MIAC leaders to just 33.3 percent shooting (19-of-57) overall and 4-of-19 (19 percent) from beyond the arc as the Auggies finished with a season-low point total.
 
Carleton won the battle on the glass, out-rebounding Augsburg, 40-37. The Knights had 10 steals, compared to the Auggies' three, and recorded 13 assists, two more than the visitors.
 
Jen Masello had a double-double of her own for Augsburg (13 points, 16 rebounds), which also saw Anja Smith (11 points) and Jaley Coplin (10 points) reach double figures in scoring.
 
Augsburg—which entered the day receiving votes in the D3hoops.com Top-25 poll and won the season's first meetings between these teams by a 72-45 score—averaged a 16.2-point margin of victory during its win streak but was never able to generate separation in this one.
 
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton will host Macalester College on Wednesday, Feb. 2, at 7:00 PM.