Box Score -Jan. 7, 2017 - It seems safe to say that the opposition never saw it coming. Neither did most of the crowd in Geiseman Gymnasium. But to Concordia-Chicago women's basketball coach Rusty Rogers, it wasn't that unusual at all.

"What you saw there, those eight out of nine threes, that's something we're capable of. Our girls have that confidence, that's the way we play. They just kept firing away, and eventually the shots fell down." And just like that, the Concordia-Chicago women's eight threes in the fourth quarter turned a deficit into a runaway victory, 69-53 over the Marian Sabres.

The Cougars' fifth consecutive win at home this season proved to be one of its most difficult, despite a short-handed Sabres' team that came into today's game with just two wins overall. The visitors grabbed control of the game from the opening minutes, as Nicole Paulus and Brandi Bender led the way. Bender's basket at the midway point of the quarter gave the Sabres a 10-8 lead. They would build on that lead as CUC shot just 3-11 for the quarter. A three by Paulus and a jumper by Sarah Schultz made the score MU 17, CUC 10 after the first 10 minutes.

In the second quarter, it was Marian that struggled from the field, shooting 3-13. Trailing 22-17, a Miranda Rogers three and a Sarah Smith layup brought the Cougars even. The Sabres briefly regained the lead by three, but Taylor Jacobsen then struck for three consecutive baskets, She went inside for the last two scores including a twisting layup with two second left to put the halftime score at Cougars 28, Sabres 25.

The Cougars continued to lead for all but a one-minute spell in the third quarter, although they could not shake the pesky Sabres. Crystal Corr gave CUC a seven-point lead, their largest to that point, at the 3:39 mark, but Paulus nailed a three to bring Marian right back. However, it was T. Jacobsen once again to provide the finishing touch for the quarter, scoring off a feed from sister Erin Jacobsen to restore a seven-point lead after three, 43-36.

To their credit, the visitors were not ready to capitulate. Instead, they scored the first 10 points of the fourth quarter, capped off by a Bender three and a Brianna Koopman layup. The Cougars fought back, with Corr scoring on a putback. Moments later, Bender missed on a three with Rogers capturing the rebound.

With 5:57 remaining, the Cougars were about to embark on an amazing run. Courtney Lofink's feed to T. Jacobsen was converted for a three, giving CUC the lead for good. A Rogers steal then led to Lauren Orr knocking down a three for a 51-46 lead, forcing Marian to call a timeout. But the minute break did not slow the Cougars.Instead, the Cougars turned in one of the game's top plays as Orr blocked a shot by a Marian player. The Cougars corralled the rebound and moved quickly down the court, resulting in Rogers finding T. Jacobsen for another triple. Following a Sabres' turnover, it was Orr striking again from long range as the Cougars took their first double-digit lead of the game at 57-46.

Paulus' jumper at the 4:01 mark broke the Cougars' run of 14 straight points, but it was just a brief interruption. Rogers got in on the act as she drained a three off E. Jacobsen's pass. Lofink then hit a three from deep for her only field goal of the game for a 63-49 edge. Moments later, the Cougars misfired on their only three attempt during this stretch, but T. Jacobsen and Rogers finished off CUC's scoring with treys, wrapping up a remarkable run of 8-9 shooting from behind the arc.

The Cougars finished the game with 13-33 (.394) from threes and 26-65 (.400) overall. Jacobsen recorded her second consecutive 25-point game, canning 5-11 from long range. Orr added 13 points including three triples, and Rogers was 4-5 from downtown for 12 points. Lofink, limited to 20 minutes due to foul trouble, recorded seven assists to go with five points and five rebounds. Corr was CUC's leading rebounder with 11.

Marian was led by Paulus who scored 19 points. She hit 7-8 from the field including all four of her three-point attempts  Bender was also in double figures, scoring 12.  

Concordia-Chicago (7-5, 6-3 NACC) will go on the road for their next two games, starting Wednesday night with a game at Benedictine University.