MARSHALL – A scoring outburst from Southwest Minnesota State’s Sam Wall paved the way for an 88-85 home win for the Mustangs over undefeated Minnesota State Saturday afternoon. The Mavericks were ranked No. 4 in the country coming into the game.

“Every night, someone can go off. I guess tonight was just my night,” Wall said.

Sam Wall couldn’t miss no matter where she shot from. From mid-range leaners to contested 3-pointers, every shot that came out of her hands seemed to find the bottom of the net. She had 20 points at halftime and finished the game with 25 on 70% from the field and 4-7 shooting from behind the arc.

While the Mustangs played well in each of the first two quarters, the third quarter was where they made their mark. They outscored the Mavericks by 8 points in the quarter. Madison Gehloff hit a corner 3 at the buzzer to extend SMSU’s lead to 9 points heading into the final frame.

Gehloff filled up the box score on the night, scoring 11 points, six rebounds, and three assists.

Both teams wanted to play at a fast pace, but the Mustangs looked ready. Minnesota State employed a full-court press all game, but the Mustangs were able to find passing lanes that resulted in quick transition baskets.

“We play very similar, the difference is that we probably don’t press as much as them. We were just very comfortable in space and we just let it fly,” SMSU head coach Tom Webb said. “That’s the one thing we do, we shoot threes, we just told them if you get an open look, shoot it. Do what you got to do to be you.”

SMSU played the Mavericks tight in the first quarter, but they came to the end with momentum. Wall hit a buzzer-beater three to cut the deficit to 2 heading into the second quarter and she picked up right where she left off, knocking down three free throws after getting fouled on an attempt from behind the arc to give the Mustangs their first lead of the game after trailing by as many as 7 points in the first quarter.

Prior to Saturday’s game, Minnesota State was undefeated. They had won seven of their nine games by double-digits and had an average margin of victory of 26 points.

“There are just so many emotions going through my head right now,” Wall said after the win. “I’m just so proud of my team and our team effort we had to knock off this team. We needed everyone tonight and we got everyone tonight. I’m so proud of the girls on our team.”

The win comes on the heels of a loss to Concordia-St. Paul Friday night, in which the Mustangs had a chance to tie the game with the final possession but failed to get a shot off.

While the Mustangs only had one scorer finish in double figures in that game, they did an excellent job of varying their scoring output against the Mavericks. Five Mustangs finished the game with 10 or more points, including 15 points, nine rebounds and four assists from Hannah Parsley and 16 points and nine rebounds from Bri Stoltzman.

Following the big win, the Mustangs (8-4) will have some time off before their next game, when they go on the road to face Sioux Falls in a 1 p.m. New Year’s Eve game.

SMSU 88, Minnesota State 85

SMSU 23 24 22 19

MSU 25 21 14 25

SCORING (FG-FGA-PTS): SMSU (Wall 7-10-25; Stoltzman 5-12-16; Parsley 6-10-15; Peyton Blandin 5-7-13; Gehloff 4-8-11)

PASSING (AST-TO): SMSU (Borchers 5-6; Parsley 4-5; Gehloff 3-2; Stoltzman 3-4)

REBOUNDING (ORB-TRB): SMSU (Parsley 3-9, Stoltzman 2-9; Gehloff 2-6)

DEFENSIVE (STL-BLK): SMSU (Parsley 2-1; Stoltzman 2-1)