Melanie Auguste scored 12 of her 14 points in the final 8:16 to lead Colorado College to a 59-57 victory over Austin College on Saturday night at Reid Gymnasium.

 

Becky Luetjen posted team highs of 16 points and nine rebounds as the Tigers improved to 15-7 overall and 8-5 in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference. CC's 15 victories ties the 2006-07 team for the most wins in a single season since the 1989-90 squad finished 17-9.

 

Austin dropped to 9-14 overall and 4-9 in the SCAC, and is tied with Millsaps College in the battle for the final West Division berth in the conference tournament.

 

Auguste, who became just the fourth player in the program's history to eclipse the 1,500-points plateau, put the Tigers ahead for good on a pull-up jumper in the lane with 5:04 remaining. She scored again then assisted on Luetjen's layup that gave CC a 55-50 lead with 1:52 to go.

 

The Kangaroos cut their deficit to three points twice inside the final two minutes, only to see Auguste answer at the other end. Her jumper with 38 seconds remaining proved to be the game winner when Austin's Amber Stafford knocked down a long three-point attempt with 30 seconds to play.

 

Katy Williams posted game highs with 26 points and 16 rebounds, while Maegan Fitzgerald added 14 points and five assists. Only four other players scored for the 'Roos, combining for 17 points.  

 

Austin jumped out to an early 11-4 advantage, but the Tigers rallied to take a 33-28 lead after the first 20 minutes. CC never was able to pull away in the second half, and the Kangaroos went ahead 46-44 on Kayla Redden's three-pointer with 9:21 to play.

 

Williams gave Austin its final lead at 50-49 when she converted a pair of free throws with 6:11 remaining, but she was held scoreless the remainder of the game. 

 

Colorado College will play its final two games of the regular season next weekend when the Tigers travel to Texas for conference games at Trinity University and Southwestern University on Friday and Sunday, respectively.