Park City, Kansas — The Dordt Defenders earned a trip to the round of 16 in the NAIA National Championship with a slight 66-65 win over Sterling (Kansas) that wasn’t secured until a shot at the buzzer from the free throw line came up short by Sterling.
Dordt started sluggishly and found itself down 7-0 2:30 into the game before Ashtyn Veerbeek stopped the dry spell with a basket. Dordt steadily cut into the lead and had the difference down to 14-11 at the end of the first quarter when Karly Gustafson got a basket with under a minute remaining.
Dordt took its first lead of the game on a Bailey Beckman three-point shot with 7:42 left in the half and Dordt eventually took a 23-18 lead on a Veerbeek basket. Sterling had an answer and scored the next six points. Dordt recovered and again got the lead to five on three free throws by Veerbeek at the 1:11 mark but Emmily Hendrixson knocked down a three on the next possession and then a three-point play by Bethany Stucky ended the scoring in the half for a 32-31 Sterling advantage.
Dordt grabbed a brief 38-34 lead with 6:22 left in the third quarter when Karly Gustafson scored the last of seven points in a row but Sterling knocked down a three. Faith Van Holland was equal to the task for Dordt and had a 41-40 lead with 4:47 left in the period.
Neither team was able to muster more than a four point lead the rest of the period and Hendrixson had a buzzer beater to unlock a 49-49 tie and send the Warriors to a 51-49 lead entering the fourth quarter. The Warriors were still up 59-55 when Janie Schoonhoven made a free throw and later had a three-point play to tie the game at 59-59. The teams exchanged free throws and STering was up 63-62 with 2:45 left in regulation. Gustafson came back with a basket for a 64-63 lead with 2:20 left.
Sterling answered with a Korynn Clason basket at the 1:57 mark and Ashtyn Veerbeek ended the scoring with a shot near the basket on an assist by Gustafson for a 66-65 lead.
Dordt got an initial stop but was unable to convert themselves, giving the ball to Sterling with :21 left. Sterling missed a shot with under five seconds remaining but Dordt was unable to secure the rebound and it went out of bounds. After a Sterling timeout and a pair of Dordt timeouts the Warriors inbounded to Clason and her pull up jumper was short of the mark and the Defenders survived.
Dordt advances with a 26-8 record while Sterling ends the season with a 33-3 mark.
Dordt was 24-60 from the field and 4-21 from the arc with 14-20 free throws.
Sterling was 27-71 from the field and 4-9 from the arc with 7-10 free throw success.
Sterling had a 44-42 rebounding advantage.
Karly Gustafson had 16 points and eight rebounds while Ashtyn Veerbeek had 13 points and 21 rebounds with three assists and five blocked shots.
Bailey Beckman had 11 points and four rebounds and Janie Schoonhoven scored eight with eight rebounds and three assists.
Hayden Heimensen had eight points and six rebounds.
Sterling was topped by Korynn Clason with 19 and Emmily Hendrixson scored 17 with Bethany Stucky knocking down 15.
Dordt will play on Friday night, March 18 at 8:00 pm in the round of 16 in Sioux City, Iowa.
