DUBUQUE, Iowa - The opening round of the 2024 A-R-C Women's Basketball Tournament began on Tuesday night as the #4 University of Dubuque Spartans hosted the #5 Simpson College Storm. In a back and forth game the Spartans used a late fourth quarter run to lift them over the Storm protecting home court with a 66-58 win.

In the opening minutes, neither team could gain a sizable advantage as the Spartans led by as many as four points. The Spartans saw their lead vanish as the Storm closed out the first quarter on a 10-2 run, trailing 23-14. The Storm continued to stay hot as they ripped off six straight points to start the second quarter forcing the Spartans into a timeout. The Spartans started to chip away at the 15 point deficit as Morgan Hawkins chipped in four points and back-to-back threes from Samantha McDonald and Tabria Thomas brought the Spartans within four (30-26). At the half the Spartans trailed 34-32. 

Both teams continued to trade buckets as the game stayed a one possession game throughout most of the third quarter. After a three from Madi Petersen the Spartans extended their lead to five 43-38. At the end of the third, the score was all knotted at 47-47.

Once again the Storm started out strong in fourth quarter jumping back out to a five point lead 56-51. A response from the Spartans evened the game at 58-58 with 1:14 remaining. A key defensive stop gave the Spartans a chance to take the lead. With time winding down on the shot clock, Hawkins swished a mid-range fadeaway jump shot giving the Spartans a 60-58 lead as the crowd erupted. Another great defensive effort resulted in a stop for the Spartans as Thomas iced the game from the free throw line moving on to the second round of the A-R-C Tournament.

Thomas carried the Spartans with a game high 28 points on 8-13 attempts including 10-11 from the charity strip. Hawkins recorded her second double-double of the season with a season high 18 points and 11 rebounds. Karsen Kershner added eight points while Petersen and McDonald finished with five points each. The Spartans scored 15 second chance points and shot 87% (21-24) from the free throw line in the win.

Up Next
The Spartans have advanced to the A-R-C Semifinals and will travel to the #1 Wartburg College Knights. The game is scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m. The other A-R-C semifinal game includes the #2 Loras College Duhawks vs. #3 Coe College Kohawks.