WAYNE, Neb. -- [box
score] The Bemidji State women's basketball team ran into
a buzz saw Friday night traveling to Wayne, Neb. to battle
the 23-ranked Wayne State Wildcats. One of the hottest teams
in the Division II ranks completed the season sweep over the
Beavers in a 91-58 drubbing at WSC's Rice Auditorium. It was
the Wildcats' school-record 13th consecutive win as the team
improved to a perfect 9-0 record versus NSIC competition this
season to stay alone at the top on the league's standings.
The Beavers turned the ball over 21 times
in the game--the most miscues of the 2005-06 conference season--and
BSU paid dearly for those mistakes. WSC converted BSU's turnovers
into 31 points while the Beavers garnered just 11 off the
12 Wildcat turnovers.
BSU also squandered opportunities at the
free-throw line as the team shot just 57 percent for the game
(13-23).
Erin McCormick and Nicole Gruntorad paced
the WSC offensive attack netting 19 and 16 points respectively.
McCormick was a team-best 7-of-10 from the field while Gruntorad
made good on 4-of-9 three-point attempts. The Wildcats shot
a smoldering 52 percent (33-64) in the game while grabbing
a 37-33 edge on the glass.
McCormick also topped the team's rebounding
effort grabbing a game-high 12 to register the only double-double
of the night.
Sophomore Karlee Simonson
(So., F, Rockford, Minn.) was the lone Beaver to record a
double-digit point total with 10 points. Stephanie
Peterson (So., C, Bismarck, N.D.) added nine while
junior Nichole Mazurek (F, Hurley, Wis.)
poured in a career-best seven points in just eight minutes
of play. Amy Lawson (So., PG, Spencer, Iowa) hauled in a team-best
five rebounds on the night.
The Beavers used a an eight-point run capped
by a Melissa Roberts (Fr., G/F, Staples,
Minn.) jumper to erase an early seven-point deficit and take
a 13-12 lead at the 13:32 mark of the first half. But the
Wildcats would rattle off the next seven points to regain
the lead and take a 19-13 lead at the midway point of the
half.
Bemidji State trimmed the WSC lead to three
points with seven minutes to go in the half, but the Wildcats
would net 14 of the next 18 points going 4-for-4 from the
field, including a 2-of-2 effort from beyond the arc, and
a perfect 3-of-3 from the line during the stretch.
The run would give the Wildcats their largest
lead of the night at 14 points (39-25) as the team coasted
to a 45-32 lead a the break.
BSU's Simonson netted the first bucket of
the second half cutting the WSC lead to 11 (45-34), but the
Wildcats would out score the Beavers 21 to nine during the
next 11 minutes nabbing a 70-46 lead with just over eight
minutes to go in the game.
Wayne State would not look back increasing
its advantage to as many as 35 in the game's final minute
before gaining the 91-58 win.
The loss drops Bemidji State to 10-12 overall
and 3-6 in NSIC play. Due to Minnesota-Crookston's loss to
Northern State tonight, the teams remain tied for the fifth
spot in the conference standings with just five games reaming
on the regular season slate.
The Beavers are back in action tomorrow traveling
to Southwest Minnesota State University in an attempt to complete
the season sweep over the Mustangs and former head coach Mike
Power. The game is set for a 6 p.m. tip-off at the R/A Facility
in Marshall, Minn.
