Katie Maguire scored a game-high 18 points to lead five Buena Vista players in double figures. She was 4 of 7 from three-point range and a perfect 4 of 4 from the free-throw line as the third-seeded Beavers beat the sixth-seeded Rams for the second time this season.
Nine minutes into the game, Buena Vista jumped out to a 21-10 lead. The Beavers maintained that margin for much of the first half and took a 39-28 advantage into halftime. Buena Vista never let Cornell get any closer than 10 points in the second half.
Kelli Staley tallied 14 points and nine rebounds as Buena Vista improved to 17-9 on the season. Jess Griggs added 12 points and seven rebounds. Katie Ebel came off the bench to register 11 points and six rebounds. Tracy Hartwig scored 10 points and yanked down eight rebounds. She also had four assists, two steals, and two blocked shots, all of which were team highs.
Cornell, which was making a postseason appearance after not winning a game last season, was led by Anna Skaggs who scored 17 points. Katie Morris registered 10 points and nine rebounds while Tiffany Cowan pulled in a game-high 12 rebounds.
Buena Vista shot 29 of 73 (40%) from the floor and had a 51-45 rebounding advantage. Cornell, which ended its campaign at 7-19, shot 20 of 64 (31%) from the field and committed seven more turnovers than BVU.
Buena Vista will face Luther, the second seed in the tournament, on Thursday at 7 p.m. in Decorah. The game will be broadcast in the Storm Lake area on 101.7 FM KAYL. The winner will advance to Saturday's championship game.
Cornell College vs Buena Vista University 02/21/06 6:00 pm at Storm Lake, IA At Storm Lake, IA BUENA VISTA UNIVERSITY 82, CORNELL COLLEGE 60 CORNELL COLLEGE (7-19) SKAGGS, Anna 5-13 5-6 17; MORRIS, Katie 3-7 3-4 10; WALLACE, Brianna 3-7 1-1 8; COWAN, Tiffany 4-18 0-0 8; MERRIMAN, Dani 2-7 0-0 6; MOELLER, Courtney 2-2 0-0 6; FELTES, Ashley 1-2 0-0 3; GILLESPIE, Stephanie 0-1 1-2 1; ROBERTS, Heather 0-1 1-4 1; CORKIN, Britt 0-1 0-0 0; DeWITZ, Amy 0-0 0-0 0; FINKLE, Diana 0-5 0-2 0. Totals 20-64 11-19 60. BUENA VISTA UNIVERSITY (17-9) MAGUIRE, Katie 5-13 4-4 18; STALEY, Kelli 6-15 2-2 14; GRIGGS, Jess 3-8 3-4 12; EBEL, Katie 3-6 2-2 11; HARTWIG, Tracy 4-12 2-2 10; ERNST, Katie 4-7 0-1 8; MEYER, Lindsey 2-5 0-0 5; PUTNEY, Melissa 1-5 0-1 2; SCHMIDT, Jacqulyn 1-1 0-0 2; SCHWEITZBERGER, Jenn 0-0 0-0 0; MOORE, Tia 0-1 0-0 0; DAVISON, Lynnsey 0-0 0-0 0; HEITMANN, Penni 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-73 13-16 82. Cornell College............... 28 32 - 60 Buena Vista University........ 39 43 - 82 3-point goals-Cornell College 9-29 (MOELLER, Courtney 2-2; SKAGGS, Anna 2-4; MERRIMAN, Dani 2-7; WALLACE, Brianna 1-1; MORRIS, Katie 1-2; FELTES, Ashley 1-2; CORKIN, Britt 0-1; FINKLE, Diana 0-4; COWAN, Tiffany 0-6), Buena Vista University 11-28 (MAGUIRE, Katie 4-7; EBEL, Katie 3-4; GRIGGS, Jess 3-7; MEYER, Lindsey 1-2; HARTWIG, Tracy 0-5; STALEY, Kelli 0-3). Fouled out--Cornell College-None, Buena Vista University-None. Rebounds-Cornell College 45 (COWAN, Tiffany 12), Buena Vista University 51 (STALEY, Kelli 9). Assists-Cornell College 9 (FINKLE, Diana 2; MOELLER, Courtney 2; WALLACE, Brianna 2), Buena Vista University 16 (HARTWIG, Tracy 4). Total fouls-Cornell College 17, Buena Vista University 13. A-675 Quarterfinal round Iowa Conference Tournament Buena Vista Advances to play second seeded Luther College on Thursday.