The University of Minnesota Duluth women's basketball team returned to Romano Gymnasium tonight to open up another week of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) action, hitting roadblocks in the second half as they fell to the No. 19 ranked Southwest Minnesota State University Mustangs 89-63.

Final Score: UMD (63) - SMSU (89)

After falling behind 16-6, UMD went on a 5-0 run with 1:47 left in the first quarter, culminating in a bucket from Moorjani, to narrow its deficit to 16-11. SMSU answered back and added to its lead, leaving the Bulldogs down 20-11 entering the second quarter.

The Bulldogs then cut the Mustangs lead to 32-24 before collecting nine unanswered points, highlighted by a three from Moorjani, to take a 33-32 lead. The Mustangs then came back to take a 35-33 lead heading into the halftime break.

UMD's deficit continued to grow after the intermission, and the Bulldogs faced a 67-49 disadvantage heading to the fourth quarter. UMD played well near the basket throughout the quarter, scoring 12 of its 16 points in the paint.

UMD could not pull any closer in the fourth, losing by a final of 89-63. The Bulldogs got a boost from its bench in the period, with non-starters scoring five of their 14 total points.

Bulldog Notes vs. SMSU

Myra Moorjani collected 22 points and two steals to lead the Bulldogs. Johanna Miller helped out with a double double of 13 points and a team high 10 rebounds and Maria Counts chipped in with six points and five assists.

Looking Ahead

Bulldog women's basketball (7-15, 5-12 NSIC) heads over to South Dakota this weekend to take on the Augustana University Vikings on Saturday. Tip-off against the Vikings is currently set for 5:30 PM.