>La Grande Observer | Union and Wallowa Counties' News Leader

SIOUX CITY, Iowa — Time heals all wounds?

Yes, it does.  And how nice it is.

The No.7-seeded EOU Lady Mountaineers upset No. 2  Cardinal Stritch, 52-49, saving the best for last during the final game of the night Thursday at the NAIA Division II Championships at the Tyson Events Center/Gateway Arena.

It went down to the wire, but yet again, as the Mounties have seen all season, someone stepped up big in the clutch, and that someone, yet again, was Sheena Henderson.

With 49 seconds remaining, and trailing by one, Henderson grabbed a rebound and put it back through the cylinder, giving her team a 50-49 lead. Cardinal Stritch thought it had that lead back, but its basket by Jeni Caldwell was blown dead when she committed an offensive foul, nullifying the basket and giving EOU possession.

Guess who took that charge?  Henderson. And then two more free throws for EOU gave it a three-point lead (52-49), and that would be all it needed as Cardinal Stritch could not find the tying basket.

Stritch goes home. EOU moves on.

And a lot of it can be credited to Henderson.

“Sheena really just carried our team in the second half,” EOU coach Anji Weissenfluh said.

“I’ve seen her play well, but I don’t know if I’ve seen her play that well on both ends of the court.

“Without a doubt, she played inspired ball. She played phenomenal.”

Henderson (14 points, 10 rebounds), Elise Hawes (10 points, 11 rebounds) and Jenny Fiso (10 points) led the way for an EOU team that rebounded nicely from an opening-round upset loss in the Cascade Conference Tournament on Feb. 26.

Also, Tiffanie Ulmer — a clutch player along with Henderson, both labeled by Weissenfluh as integral pieces to this team — returned from a calf injury.

Ulmer is 60-65 percent after suffering the injury just a few days before their Cascade Conference tournament opening game. But her return gives the Mounties another option — a valuable option. A needed option.

 She played 25 minutes, scoring five points to go along with three assists.

“She just does so much for our team and our team confidence,” Weissenfluh said. “It was awesome to see her back out there.”

Time heals all wounds.

So now that first hurdle is cleared and the Mounties are sprinting ahead, now looking to clear the next one: Black Hills State (S.D.) at 7:15 p.m. PST in round two action.

Weissenfluh said it will be tough, but the team believes in itself.

And if they have that belief, anything can happen.

As for this win?

“It was unbelievable,” Weissenfluh said.  “It’s the biggest win in our program history.”

“They just played their hearts out and found a way to get it done. They’re excited. I’m excited.

“They feel like they really accomplished something,”

CARDINAL STRITCH (49)

Gilgenbach 3-6 2-2 10, Caldwell 4-11 1-2 10, Stelloh 4-17 0-0 9, Ewald 0-4 0-0 0, Shirey 4-12 1-3 9, Daum 2-7 0-0 5, Skorusa 1-1 0-0 2, Henke 0-1 0-0 0, Klocek 0-0 0-0 0, Bares 1-2 2-2 4, Smith-Hirsch 0-0 0-0 0, Reid 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 19-62 6-9 49

EASTERN OREGON UNIVERSITY (52)

Leavitt 2-6 0-0 5, Olson 4-9 0-0 8, Henderson 6-13 2-3 14, Ulmer 2-8 0-0 5, Hawes 3-7 1-2 10, Fiso 3-6 3-4 10, Matson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-49 6-9 52.

Halftime score – Cardinal Stritch 23, Eastern Oregon 22.Three-pointers – Cardinal Stritch 5-18 (Gilgenbach 2-4, Caldwell 1-3, Stelloh 1-7, Ewald 0-1, Daum 1-3). Eastern Oregon 6-17 (Leavitt 1-2, Olson 0-2, Ulmer 1-5, Hawes 3-6, Fiso 1-2). Fouled out – None. Total fouls – Cardinal Stritch 17, Eastern Oregon 11. Technical fouls – None. Turnovers – Cardinal Stritch 14, Eastern Oregon 22. Rebounds – Cardinal Stritch 35 (Caldwell 9), Eastern Oregon 40 (Henderson 13). Assists – Cardinal Stritch 9 (Caldwell 4), Eastern Oregon 11 (Matson/Ulmer/Olson 3).