Release courtesy of Wes Frahm, Director of Athletics Communications and Marketing, Michigan Technological University

SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Michigan Tech’s run in the NCAA Division II Women’s Basketball Tournament came to an end today with a 61-53 quarterfinal loss to No. 4-ranked Minnesota State Mankato. The Huskies led 31-30 at halftime, but couldn’t generate enough offense in the second half. Tech, which was playing in the Elite Eight for the second time in school history, posted a final record of 27-7.

“This was a hard-fought battle,” said head coach John Barnes. “I felt like we did a good job defensively by holding them 20 points under their average. Offensively, we didn’t do a good enough job. Turnovers killed us.”

The lead changed hands 10 times in the game — five in each half. The Black and Gold trailed 6-2 in the early moments before four straight 3-pointers led to a 12-2 run and a 14-8 advantage. Tech went on to hit its first six triples. It’s first miss from behind the arc came at the first-half buzzer that would have made it a four-point cushion at the break.

Instead it was a one-point margin, and Tech wouldn’t make another 3-pointer for the remainder of the game despite 10 attempts.

“What can you do,” said Barnes about the second-half shooting. “I give Mankato a lot of credit for taking us out of our offense. Their pressure was like nothing we’d seen all year.”

Still, Tech had its opportunities to make a comeback down the stretch. The Huskies’ defense got three straight stops while the score was 49-43, but turned the ball over twice and missed a 3-pointer.

With 5:33 to go, Katie Wysocky created a steal and started down the floor with again a chance to cut into a six-point deficit. She had her pocket picked by Tiffany Moe, who went in for an uncontested layup to make the score 53-45.

Tech started fouling with under two minutes remaining, and MSU missed three straight front ends of one-and-one free throws. The Huskies couldn’t convert on the other end, however. Lisa Staehlin’s layup in the closing second made the margin eight — the closest the Huskies were in the final five minutes.

Danae Danen was Tech’s leading scorer with 18 points on 8-of-14 shooting. The junior center also posted seven rebounds and three blocks in the contest. Wysocky registered 11 points and 14 rebounds. Katie Zimmerman scored nine points — all in the first half off 3-pointers.

Senior Alicia Schneider had eight points and two assists in her final collegiate game. Junior point guard Sarah Stream dished out five assists but did not score on six field goal attempts.

Tech shot 48 percent in the first half and 36 percent in the second to finish the game at 42. The Mavericks were the opposite, improving as the game went on for 47 percent. MSU also posted a 36-30 rebounding advantage and forced 21 Huskies’ turnovers while committing 17.

“I’m really proud of the team and what we accomplished this year,” said Barnes. “It’s hard to think about the future right now, but I hope this experience helps us get back here next year and have better results.”

Michigan Tech’s 34th season of intercollegiate women’s basketball included its ninth Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championship, its 14th NCAA Tournament appearance and an NCAA Midwest Regional Championship.

A welcome home celebration of Tech’s season will take place Thursday (March 25) at 5 p.m. in the SDC Gym. The campus and community are invited to come celebrate one of the finest seasons in school history with Tech President Glenn Mroz, athletic director Suzanne Sanregret and members of the team.

Notes: Schneider was Tech’s lone senior, meaning Tech will bring back nearly everyone to next year’s team including the entire starting five ... Tech’s other trip to the Elite Eight came in 1993, when it advanced to the national semifinals and finished in third place.