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| Jaime Forsberg |
KIRKSVILLE, Mo. -- The Lady Miners needed a miracle Tuesday night -- and their wishes were answered.
Katie Bunge had just seen a shot that could have won the game roll off the rim in the waning seconds of overtime, leaving UMR with one-half of a second to get off a shot to overcome a one-point deficit to Truman State that came courtesy of Georgia Mueller's two free throws with 16 seconds to play.
But Jaime Forsberg got a open off a screen on the wing, took Maggie Thompson's inbounds pass and drained a three-pointer as time expired to give the Lady Miners a 57-55 win over the Bulldogs for their first overtime victory of the season in three tries.
It was a game that the Lady Miners struggled in all evening, as they came out sluggish in the first half and found themselves staring at a 10-point deficit at the intermission. UMR made only five of its 25 shots in the first half, starting out cold and staying that way as the Bulldogs ran out to a 26-16 lead.
But after the teams traded baskets to open the second half, UMR scored on seven straight possessions and was able to grab its first lead of the night at 30-29 on a three-pointer by Chism McEntire with 16:05 to play. The teams swapped the lead for a couple of possessions before the Bulldogs regained a three-point advantage on a trey by Julia Montebello.
Truman pushed that lead out to five before the Lady Miners rattled off seven straight points to retake the lead at 43-41 on a 17-foot jumper by Maggie Thompson at the 8:37 mark. The Bulldogs scored the next four points to get the advantage back before both teams went into an extended scoring drought.
Candace McGee's three-pointer with 2:28 to go gave the Bulldogs a 48-44 lead, but baskets by Bunge and Nicole Dierking in the next minute allowed UMR to tie the game. Both teams then had chances to get the lead late in the contest, but the Lady Miners turned the ball over and Truman missed two shots -- including an open three by McGee -- to send the game into overtime.
UMR, who had already dropped overtime games to Lynn and Drury this season, led for much of the overtime period and built its biggest lead of the night at four on a second chance basket by Dierking with 2:46 to go. But another three-pointer by McGee drew Truman to within one, then the Bulldogs got their only lead in the extra period when Mueller -- who led all scorers with 25 points -- hit the two free throws with 16 seconds to go.
Tamara McCaskill had a shot blocked on UMR's ensuing trip down the floor, then Bunge had a chance when she drove the baseline but missed the shot. The Lady Miners were given possession after the scramble for the rebound to set up the opportunity for Forsberg to cash in the game-winner.
Dierking and Bunge both finished with double-doubles for UMR, with Dierking posting team highs with 15 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Bunge had 13 points and 10 boards while McCaskill finished with 11 points. UMR shot 34.6 percent for the game, but connected on 44.7 percent of their attempts after halftime.
The Lady Miners held Truman to 32.8 percent shooting for the night and outrebounded the Bulldogs (5-3) 44-39.
UMR (6-3) will host Lincoln Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Bullman Multi-Purpose Building. The Blue Tigers fell to 1-10 with a 73-53 loss Tuesday at Harding.
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