(First Round Box Score) (Consolation Box Score)
Goshen, IN — The Goshen College Classic returned to the Roman Gingerich Center this weekend after a one-year hiatus, and the ninth-annual event supplied fans with excitement, heartbreak, joy and frustration.

The Goshen College women’s basketball team could have done without some of those emotions.

Goshen (4-10, 0-3) lost a heartbreaking, 52-53 decision to Purdue University-Calumet in Friday’s opening game, but responded with a triumphant 79-65 win over Indiana Tech in Saturday’s consolation event, providing retribution to a 66-87 loss to the Lady Warriors in mid-November (click here for related article). The weekend’s classic provided other interesting storylines, most notably Indiana University-South Bend’s improbable run to the championship — the Lady Titans knocked off Indiana Tech by a 63-56 score Friday and won the tournament with a 66-47 win over Purdue-Calumet — all while entering the weekend with a 0-11 win-loss record.

That wasn’t of major concern to Leafs’ head coach Steve Wiktorowski, however, who witnessed his team drop its fourth game of the season by three points or less Friday night to the Lady Peregrines.

“This was one of the most frustrating losses our young team has had this year because I thought we probably played our best 40 minutes of the year and had a lot of people play balanced minutes and really contribute,” Wiktorowski said following the 52-53 loss. “We just have to learn how to finish off close games, especially at the free throw line. This is the fourth time already this year that we have lost games by three points or less, so we have been competitive a lot of the time despite our youth and have put ourselves in position to win at least half our games this year. Now we must learn to execute the little things and take advantage of when we are in such position.”

Wiktorowski’s team appeared to be in great shape at the conclusion of Friday’s first half, as the team took a 25-21 lead into the intermission. Goshen maintained its lead throughout the majority of the second period, but Purdue-Calumet slowly began to close the gap. A made basket by Calumet’s Sara Keilman gave the Lady Peregrines their first lead of the second half (44-43) with 8:56 remaining, but Goshen responded. A made three pointer from sophomore Krystal Duensing and a subsequent layup from senior Danielle Haney made it a 51-47 Goshen advantage with 4:29 to play. Purdue-Calumet responded with back-to-back baskets to tie the game at 51-51 with 2:00 remaining, but sophomore Troyanna Scott was fouled on Goshen’s next possession.

Unfortunately, that was the one area that proved to be the Leafs’ nemesis on the evening.

Scott made one of two freebies to help her team to a 52-51 lead, but Purdue-Calumet scored on its ensuing possession. After taking a timeout, Wiktorowski drew up a set that freed Scott on the inside. Her shot missed, however, and the Lady Peregrines were able to run out the clock.

“We didn't shoot very well, and probably lost the game at the free throw line in the second half with two for nine shooting,” Wiktorowski said. “We ran a play at the end of the game that gave us a good look close in, we just weren't able to convert it.”

Goshen’s two for nine performance (22.2 percent) from the charity stripe in the second half highlighted a seven for 17 effort from the line for the game (41.2 percent), as those issues helped to offset a 14 to nine advantage on the offensive glass. Sophomore Kendra Fights led the team in scoring 11 points and grabbing eight rebounds. Duensing scored nine and dished out four assists while freshman Kimmie Hummer added eight points.

“I thought Kendra Fights had her best game against good competition and competed well on both ends, and (freshman) Chloe VanDenBrink was outstanding in the first half,” Wiktorowski said. “Our defense was difficult to play against and I felt we rebounded very well against a much bigger opponent. Still, despite not shooting well, I thought we did some really good things and showed a lot of balance with contributions from all nine players who played.”

Goshen’s reward for such heartbreak Friday was a Saturday match-up with Indiana Tech, a team that pounded the Leafs’ interior in a 21-point win on Nov. 15. Incredibly, Goshen turned the tables on the Lady Warriors, outrebounding Indiana Tech by a 34 to 26 margin overall and a 12 to six difference on the offensive boards. A made jump shot from Duensing opened the game, and Goshen would trail for just two minutes in the first half. After Indiana Tech pulled to an 18-16 lead with 11:10 remaining in the first period, Goshen responded with a 16 to three run to pull ahead by a 32-21 score with 5:13 remaining. That advantage ballooned to 45-29 at the half, and Indiana Tech would get no closer than eight points the rest of the way.

Goshen connected on 50 percent of its shot for the game (29 of 58) and made an incredible 16 of 27 first-half attempts (59.3 percent). The Leafs greatly improved both its frequency and ability to connect at the free throw line, making 16 of 19 charity attempts (84.2 percent).

“This was hopefully a real breakthrough game for us.  We have lost four games this year by a total of 10 points and I was worried about the effect that would have on our confidence. Tech beat us by 21 points a month ago as we had great difficulty with their athleticism in rebounding and handling the ball. I thought it was apparent today the amount of improvement we have made in both areas and our ability to sustain good play over 40 minutes with everyone contributing. I was also very happy with how we bounced back from a poor shooting, one-point loss the night before to shoot 50 percent from the floor and 84 percent at the line. Now it will be a test to see if this is a level of play that we can continue to achieve against other such talented teams, or whether we will go back to the inconsistent play of a young team that we've seen so far.”

Fights again paced Goshen on the scoring end, notching a season-high 22 points to go with seven rebounds. Freshman Ashley Hummer tallied 15 points on a six for seven shooting performance, while sister Kimmie scored nine and grabbed five rebounds. She also had four assists. Duensing added nine points and five assists, while VanDenBrink scored eight points and dished out five helpers.

“I thought Kendra Fights put together a very strong effort and is showing signs of giving us the kind of post presence that we really need on offense and the boards,” Wiktorowski said. “Krystal Duensing had one of her best floor games of the year and directed the team very well against their constant pressure. Both Ashley and Kimmie Hummer gave us some strong guard play and good outside shooting. Chloe VanDenBrink, Troyanna Scott and Danielle Haney all gave us good minutes and helped us with their ball handling and defense. I thought it was apparent this weekend that players are starting to become more comfortable with understanding their roles on the team and getting the most out of their minutes on the floor.”

Goshen moves to 13-5 all-time in Goshen College Classic history following the weekend’s results. The Leafs have won five of the nine classic championships.

Goshen will next return to action Tuesday night, when the team will travel to Cornerstone University. Game time is set for 7 p.m.