Annie Isler also matched her career high with 14 points, going 10-for-10 from the free-throw line, and added four rebounds and four assists for Carleton (14-4, 11-4 MIAC), which beat Bethel for the 19th straight time and the ninth straight time at West Gym.
Sarah Cotner paced Bethel (7-11, 6-9 MIAC) with 19 points and six rebounds. Annegret Nautsch added 13 points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots off the bench for the Royals and Kiersten Hansen posted 10 points, four rebounds and four assists.
The Knights trailed 30-28, at the half and the Royals extended to a four-point margin before the Knights took control of the game. Isler made four straight free throws, Connor nailed a jumper and Sarah Lincoln swished a three-pointer. After two Annie Eckhoff free throws, the Knights led, 41-34, and the hosts built the margin to 12 points midway through the half.
Bethel, though, slowly chipped away at the deficit, outscoring the Knights 11-4 to pull within a single basket with 5 minutes, 27 seconds left. The Royals, though, would have but one field goal over the next five minutes, and Connor scored six of the next eight points and Megan Mileusnic's driving lay-up from the right baseline pushed the Knight lead to 68-60 with 2:30 left on the clock.
The Knights, the best shooting team in the MIAC, shot 45 percent from the field and held the Royals to 37 percent. Carleton had a huge advantage at the line, going 22-for-32, compared to 15-of-19 for the Royals. Carleton did a good job of taking care of the ball, matching their conference season low with only 14 giveaways as the Knights held a rare 21-16 edge in points off turnovers.
The win left the Knights two games back of the top spot in the conference standings after Gustavus defeated St. Benedict today. The Knights are one game clear of Concordia-Moorhead, which beat St. Catherine, 90-88, in overtime in a battle between the two teams tied for fourth.
Carleton is back in action on Wednesday, Jan. 31, traveling to St. Paul, Minn., to face St. Thomas as part of a men's/women's double header. The men tip off at 5:45 p.m., followed by the women at 7:45 p.m. Both games can be heard locally on KQCL 95.9 FM/Power 96 and worldwide on Knights Online.
Bethel University vs Carleton College 1/27/07 3:15 pm at Northfield, MN (west Gym) At Northfield, MN (west Gym) CARLETON COLLEGE 71, BETHEL UNIVERSITY 62 BETHEL UNIVERSITY (7-11 (6-9 MIAC)) Sarah Cotner 6-13 7-9 19; Annegret Nautsch 5-8 3-3 13; Kiersten Hansen 3-8 2-2 10; Kristen Wolters 3-4 3-3 9; Heather Davis 4-8 0-0 8; Abby Thom 1-6 0-2 3; Steph Porter 0-0 0-0 0; Shari Laugen 0-7 0-0 0; Bridget Weber 0-2 0-0 0; Emily Uzpen 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 22-60 15-19 62. CARLETON COLLEGE (14-4 (11-4 MIAC)) Hannah Oken-Berg 9-20 4-7 22; Amber Connor 7-12 2-2 16; Annie Isler 2-3 10-10 14; Sarah Lincoln 2-4 2-5 7; Anna Biewen 2-5 2-6 6; Annie Eckhoff 1-3 2-2 4; Megan Mileusnic 1-3 0-0 2; Sarah Kunelius 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 24-53 22-32 71. Bethel University............. 30 32 - 62 Carleton College.............. 28 43 - 71 3-point goals-Bethel University 3-13 (Kiersten Hansen 2-4; Abby Thom 1-5; Shari Laugen 0-3; Bridget Weber 0-1), Carleton College 1-5 (Sarah Lincoln 1-2; Sarah Kunelius 0-3). Fouled out--Bethel University-Annegret Nautsch, Carleton College-None. Rebounds-Bethel University 34 (Annegret Nautsch 7), Carleton College 41 (Sarah Lincoln 9; Hannah Oken-Berg 9). Assists-Bethel University 12 (Kiersten Hansen 4; Emily Uzpen 4), Carleton College 11 (Annie Isler 4). Total fouls-Bethel University 23, Carleton College 13. A-200