The University of Minnesota Duluth women's basketball team was dealt its first Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) loss after narrowly falling 81-78 against the No. 2 (WBCA) Minnesota State University Mankato.
Leading the way for the Bulldogs was
Myra Moorjani with her second over 20-point game this season. She totaled 21 points, two steals, one block, five assists, and two rebounds while shooting 50% (8-16) from the field and 45.5% (5-11) beyond the arc. Following close behind with double-digit points were
Vanessa Bickford (16),
Lexi Karge (14), and
Claire Bjorge (14).
The first quarter saw MSU jump out ahead of UMD on a 13-2 scoring run that overpowered
Grace Counts' lone layup in the first three minutes. In the next three minutes, Bickford, Counts, and Fritz combined to chip the lead down to 15-9 after scoring seven points. The Bulldogs continued to trail as the Mavericks went on a 9-7 scoring run to end the quarter at 24-16.
The lead would hold until the 6:23 mark in the second quarter when a Moorjani three-pointer put the Bulldogs within two at 27-25. The final five minutes of the quarter did not see the lead change as the Bulldogs remained on the lower end of a 17-14 scoring run by the Mavericks to go into the halftime break trailing 44-39.
Coming out of halftime, UMD dropped further behind as MSU began a 22-8 run over the course of the period to bring a 66-47 lead over the Bulldogs into the final quarter. The fourth quarter saw Moorjani, Karge, Bjorge, and Bickford combine for a 31-point scoring run to overpower the Mavericks' 13 points, cutting the lead to 79-78 with 49 seconds remaining. The final seconds had MSU score two free throws to down the Bulldogs 81-78.
Overall, the Bulldogs soared in the fourth quarter, hitting 52.38% (11-21) from the field, 66.67% (4-6) beyond the arc, and 83.33% (5-6) from the free throw line. The team faltered in total rebounds, gathering 35 compared to MSU's 40. Leading the rebounding effort was Karge with nine rebounds (three offensive).
The Bulldogs continue battling on the road tomorrow against St. Cloud State University at 4:00 p.m. inside Halenbeck Hall.
