Audra Clark '18 helped the Wildcat basketball team earn its way into the playoffs. Photo by Kylie Macziewski '18.
It was a big week for the 亚色影库 basketball team. The Wildcats reached two big milestones last weekend, including their first Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) tournament berth since the 2009-10 season.
Key to St. Kate鈥檚 success was none other than junior guard Audra Clark '18 (Kenyon, Minn./Kenyon-Wanamingo), who also reached a career milestone. For her performances, Clark has been named Wildcat Athlete-of-the-Week.
Clark鈥檚 outstanding week started on Wednesday, when the junior scored a career-high 26 points in the Wildcats 63-61 win over Concordia College. In a tight game that featured over 10 lead changes, Clark was an offensive catalyst for St. Kate鈥檚, accounting for 41 percent of the team鈥檚 points. She also made a clutch play in the final minute, scoring the game-winning basket with under five seconds to go in regulation.
After her 26 point performance against the Cobbers, Clark needed just five more to score her 1000 career point, one of the biggest milestones in college basketball. In Saturday鈥檚 game against Saint Mary鈥檚 University, Clark didn鈥檛 waste any time achieving the feet. Her huge three-pointer in the first quarter not only ignited St. Kate鈥檚 struggling offense, but also got her within two points of the milestone. Then, in the second quarter, Clark became the eighth Wildcat in program history to score 1000 points with a left handed layup in traffic.
More important, Clark also played a large role in St. Kate鈥檚 55-52 comeback win over the Cardinals. The junior scored nine points and had a hand in multiple scoring plays, which helped the Wildcats secure a spot in the MIAC playoffs.
Thanks to Clark and company鈥檚 outstanding performances, St. Kate鈥檚 broke several program records last week and secured back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since the late 1970s. With the win over Saint Mary鈥檚 on Saturday, the Wildcats are now guaranteed their best record in MIAC play in recent history and since head coach Sean Pinkerton took over the program four years ago. St. Kate鈥檚 will return to the court on Wednesday to face Gustavus Adolphus College in its last home game of the regular season.