The UMD women's basketball team defeated Bethel 72-45 in a quick exhibition matchup in Romano on Wednesday before starting back up with regular season action next week.

Early on in the first quarter, the contest was tight. An early 4-0 lead for Duluth didn't deter Bethel, which went on a 5-0 run of its own to take the lead. Things would stay close until the score was 9-9, when the Bulldogs broke off on a 12-0 unanswered run that ran into the early stages of the second quarter (the first quarter had ended at 19-9 UMD). This left the score at 21-9 with 9:03 left in the second frame. The Royals would show some pushback- they'd counter with a 9-2 run to make the score 23-18 and bring themselves back to within five. Bethel would scratch and claw to keep it within six at 28-22 with 4:06 left in the quarter. That's when the Bulldogs turned on the jets once again, flying out on an 8-0 run in less than two minutes to make the score 36-22 with 2:18 left in the half. The second quarter would come to a close with the Bulldogs maintaining that 14-point lead, up 38-24. 

By the end of the first half, Ella Gilbertson already had nine points shooting 3-5 (60%) from the field. She scored seven of those points in the first quarter alone. She also had four rebounds. Maesyn Thiesen had six points on perfect 2-2 shooting from beyond the arc, all of which had come in the first frame. 

The Bulldog offense would remain hot through the third quarter. With 6:13 to go, UMD's lead had crossed the 20-point plateau at a score of 49-28. The lowest Bethel was able to trim their deficit down to was 15. Still, the Bulldogs exited the third with a 57-38 lead. Brooke Olson played a big role in UMD's success in the third frame, recording six points on 3-4 shooting from the field. 

The fourth quarter would see UMD take what was then its largest lead of the game at 22 when the score hit 62-40 Bulldogs with 4:45 left to play. UMD then immediately bested its efforts by taking a 26-point lead at 68-42 with 3:08 to play. From there, the Bulldogs would sail to a 72-45 victory. Lexi Karge was huge for UMD in their efforts to maintain control in the fourth, scoring eight points on 4-4 shooting. 

The final whistle saw Madelyn Granica and Karge leading the Bulldogs in points with 12. Taya Hakamaki led the team in assists with four. There was a three-way tie for the team-lead in rebounds between Taytum Rhoades, Gilbertson and Karge, who all had five. Thiesen had three steals.

Bethel was led by Anna Garfield and Rosaline Penke, who each had 12 points. Garfield split the honor of leading assist-getter with Emma Schultz- both had two on the night. Colette Duinink had nine rebounds to lead the game. Garfield also led all Royals with two steals.

POST-GAME WITH PEARSON:
UMD head coach Mandy Pearson felt as if this was an exhibition match that served its exact purpose- a chance to build experience (all the way down the roster) against a hard-nosed opponent. 

"I love playing Bethel every year in an exhibition game because we know they are well coached and are going to play hard, play tough and disciplined basketball," Pearson said. "We were able to play a lot of kids today, and it was fun to watch our younger players do some great things on the court. Such a fun group of people to coach!"

UP NEXT:
Don't be fooled by that exhibition moniker- the Bulldogs have already started their regular season, splitting their first batch of matchups this past weekend 1-1. UMD will continue that regular season campaign next Wednesday, when Parkside will come to Romano for UMD's home opener on November 16 at 5:30 p.m.