Carley Turnbull hit a free throw and
Tarae Warner canned two, following
Becca Gallis' 3-pointer in the final 44 seconds to complete Monmouth's 71-66 come-from-behind win over Ripon, clinching one of four Midwest Conference Tournament berths.
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The Fighting Scots trailed by as many as 10 in the first half, but cut the hole to 25-23 on a
Josie Morgan 3-ball midway through the second quarter. The Red Hawks countered and took a 37-27 lead at the end of the half, ending the frame on a 12-4 run.
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Monmouth's deficit grew to 14 midway through the third period before the Scots rallied again. Back-to-back threes from Warner and Morgan trimmed it to a 51-50 Ripon lead late in the third quarter.
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The Scot knotted the game on a
Jordan Kintigh layup in the first minute of the final frame, but neither team could gain a lead of more than four until the final seconds when Turnbull's free throw gave Monmouth a 69-64 edge.
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The win tied the Scots with Ripon for the top spot in the MWC at 13-3 as the first teams to clinch one of four spots in the tournament. In the event of a tie, Monmouth has the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Red Hawks by virtue of taking both meetings.
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Gallis finished with 19 points to lead four Scots in double figures.
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Monmouth travels to Cornell Tuesday for a 7:30 p.m. contest before closing the regular season Saturday with a 3 p.m. game at St. Norbert.
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