A dominating second half for the Lady Jays on Thursday night has Minnesota West back in the national semifinals.
The Lady Jays outscored Onondaga 46-10 over the final two quarters to finish off a 76-44 triumph in a quarterfinal game at the NJCAA Division 3 Women's Basketball Tournament in Rochester. Minnesota West is seeking its second straight national title, and its performance over the final 20 minutes demonstrated its capability to excel.
Onondaga actually scored more than half its total points in the first quarter alone, as it led 24-16 after the first 10 minutes thanks to makes on five of its first six 3-point attempts. The Lady Jays, though, scored the first 10 points of the second period, and the 11th-seeded Lazers couldn't make a basket until there was 3:45 left in the half.
Onondaga led 34-30 at the break, but Minnesota West scored the first 11 points of the third quarter with a burst that included back-to-back 3s from Sadie Krahling. Katrina Schutz added a couple of 3s of her own before the quarter was out, and a Krahling four-point play began a 13-0 fourth quarter surge that iced the game.
Schutz, who had a birthday Thursday, celebrated with a huge night for the Lady Jays with 25 points, 17 rebounds and three blocked shots. Krahling added 19 points and eight rebounds while Maddie Kamm had 13 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
Minnesota West will play 10th-seeded Jefferson, which upset No. 2 seed Hostos in double overtime Thursday, in the semifinals tonight in a matchup scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m.
