Erica Nord had a former teammate on her mind Wednesday at Memorial Auditorium.
The Concordia senior scored 19 points to help lift the Cobbers to a 79-65 victory against Augsburg in Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference women's basketball.
The Cobbers wore pink T-shirts for warm-ups as the team had its annual Cancer Awareness Game. Nord was wearing a pink wrist band with the number 32 stitched on it to show support for her former teammate Sara Sorbo, who is a cancer survivor and played for the Cobbers last season.
"For us, it kind of holds a special meaning because of Sara Sorbo," Nord said. "It kind of helps put things in perspective."
Concordia (16-6, 14-5 MIAC) bounced back from a 65-63 home loss against Bethel on Saturday. The Cobbers were unable to hold a late lead in that contest.
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"I was just mad after that game," said Concordia freshman Alexandra Lippert, who had 16 points and 11 rebounds against Augsburg. "I just wanted to get out here and do something and I think the rest of the team was feeling the same way. We took our anger and put it into energy and put it on the floor."
After trailing by as many as five points in the opening seven minutes, the Cobbers stormed into the lead against the Auggies.
Concordia took control with a 17-2 run that started about midway through the first half. Senior guard Maggie Bauernfeind scored six points during that span. Sophomore forward Tricia Sorensen capped the rally with a three-point play that gave the Cobbers a 26-16 lead with 7 minutes, 50 seconds to play in the first half.
That spurt helped vault Concordia to a 48-30 halftime lead. The Cobbers' lead never dipped into single digits in the second half.
"We were determined and I think we got some good things done tonight," Nord said.
The Cobbers remained in third place in the conference and have already clinched a spot in the MIAC tournament. Concordia has three games remaining in the regular season.
"We just want to be playing our best basketball," Nord said.
AUGSBURG (5-17, 4-15 MIAC): Zins 4-9 4-5 12, Borkhuis 0-7 1-2 1, Dyshaw 6-13 0-0 12, Thompson 5-78 1-2 11, Levine 7-14 7-8 22, Feis 0-0 0-0 0, Bostick 0-0 0-0 0, Ahlstrom 0-0 0-0 0, Schrank 2-8 1-3 7, Barthel 0-1 0-0 0, Wolf 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 24-62 14-20 65.
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CONCORDIA (16-6, 14-5): Schultz 1-6 2-2 4, Lippert 7-10 2-2 16, B. Jossart 5-7 1-2 12, Nord 9-14 1-5 19, Bauernfeind 2-8 5-6 10, E. Jossart 0-0 1-2 1, Herbranson 0-1 0-0 0, Thesing 0-3 4-4 4, Sorensen 3-8 1-1 8, Lymburner 0-0 1-2 1, Benjamin 0-0 0-0 0, Walloch 2-2 0-0 4, Demmer 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-59 18-26 79.
Half: CC 48, AC 30. 3-point goals: AC 3-9 (Zins 0-1, Borkhuis 0-1, Levine 1-3, Schrank 2-3, Wolf 0-1), CC 3-8 (B. Jossart 1-2, Nord 0-1, Bauernfeind 1-1, Thesing 0-2, Sorensen 1-2). Total fouls: AC 23, CC 20. Rebounds: AC 33 (Zins 6), CC 44 (Lippert 11). Assists: AC 15 (Levine 6), CC 13 (Bauernfeind 5). Steals: AC 13 (Thompson 4), CC 7 (Nord 3). Turnovers: AC 22 (Dyshaw 5), CC 22 (Nord 5).
Readers can reach Forum reporter Eric Peterson at (701) 241-5513.
Peterson's blog can be found at peterson.areavoices.com
