SIOUX CITY, Iowa -- The University of Mary and Dickinson State women's basketball teams both used solid free throw shooting to advance to the Elite Eight in the NAIA Division II basketball tournament.
Mary (26-5) got 21 points and four steals from Sarah Leer on Friday as the Marauders edged Indiana Wesleyan 67-60. Dickinson State (28-4) beat Shawnee (Ohio) State 63-53 behind 18 points and seven rebounds from Stacie Schorsch.
Dickinson State also used hot free throw shooting in its win over Shawnee State
(26-7). The Blue Hawks made 37 trips to the line, making 25 of the shots. The Bears were just 3-for-12 from the line.
Mary faces Concordia of Nebraska (35-1) in today's quarterfinals. Concordia beat William Jewel of Missouri 88-44 on Friday. Dickinson State will take on either Dakota Wesleyan of South Dakota or Bethany (Kan.).
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Jimmies win at nationals
POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. -- The Jimmies were determined that their national tournament run was not going to end on Friday.
Jamestown College took over down the stretch, owning the game's final 13 minutes to turn in a 74-65 victory over Albertson College (Idaho) before 1,120 fans at the Keeter Gymnasium.
The third-seeded Jimmies made history in the process, advancing to the national tournament Elite Eight for the first time in school history.
"It was 40 minutes of grueling basketball," said Jimmie junior point guard Imran Sufi. "Whoever did the fundamentals and hit their shots was going to win it. Fortunately, it was us."
The Coyotes kept the game close most of the way, looking to spring their second straight national tournament upset. Albertson's active 3-2 zone frustrated the Jimmies' explosive offense, making it tough for Jamestown College to find room to get open shots.
But the Jimmies found an answer at the right time.
"We didn't want to go home," said Wilkens. "(Randy) Randle and Imran hit some big shots. Everybody on down the line stepped up and did what we had to do to get the win."
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Randle, a reserve guard, helped spark the Jimmies' final push with a pair of crucial three-pointers.
Fergus Falls men win
DELHI, N.Y. -- Aaron Austin hit two free throws with 7.6 seconds remaining to seal Fergus Falls' 78-76 victory in a consolation game of the NJCAA Division III national tournament Friday.
Austin scored a game-high 32 points for Fergus Falls, which held off a 21-point, second-half charge by SUNY Delhi.
Fergus Falls will face Brookdale Community College (N.J.) at 3 p.m. today in the fifth-place game.
