WAYNE, Neb. (Rice Auditorium) (box score)- The Bemidji State University women’s basketball team suffered their first loss to Wayne State College since Feb. 10, 2006 on Friday night at the Rice Auditorium on the campus of Wayne State College. WSC built a 11-point lead with 3:46 remaining and held on for a 79-76 win.

In a very evenly matched contest where there were eight lead changes and eight tied scores the big difference was at the free-throw line. Wayne State made six more free-throws than did Bemidji State which proved to be the main difference maker. The Wildcats went 26-of-35 (.743) from the free throw line while the Beavers were 20-of-29 (.690) from the charity stripe.

Senior point guard Amy Lawson (Spencer, Iowa) led all players with a game-high 26 points on 8-of-14 from the field, 3-of-4 from behind the three-point arc and 7-of-13 from the free-throw line. Lawson also dished out a game-high six assists in the loss. Joining Lawson in double-digits was Stephanie Peterson (Sr., C, Bismarck, N.D.) and Karlee Simonson (Sr., F, Rockford, Minn.). Peterson netted her sixth double-double of the season with 18 points and 11 rebounds while Simonson chipped in 12 points while snaring seven rebounds in the contest. Lawson’s 26 points was her fifth 20-point game of her career.

Kylee McGill led five double-figure scorers for Wayne State as she had 17 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field and a perfect 6-of-6 from the free-throw line while grabbing six rebounds. Laquisha Cook, Andrea Schoepf, Jodie Boss, and Jennifer Yee were also in double-digit scoring for the Wildcats. Cook netted 16 while Schoepf added 13 with Boss and Yee chipping in 12 points apiece in the win for the Wildcats.

Wayne State jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead in the first :48 seconds of the game as Cook netted a layup followed by a Schoepf three-pointer on the Wildcats first two possessions. Colleen McKay (Fr., C, Barnum, Minn.) got the Beavers on the board with 18:36 remaining in the half. The teams traded baskets and the Wildcats held the lead up until the 10:46 mark of the first half when Simonson made a three-point play the old fashioned way to give BSU its first lead of the game at 17-16.

Wayne State regained the lead and went on a 12-4 run to push its lead to seven points, 28-21, the Wildcats largest of the game with 6:34 left in the half. BSU battled back as the Beavers outscored the WSC 15-5 over the next 5:15 to a three point lead 36-33 over the Wildcats with 1:19 left in the first half. A three-pointer by Laquisha Cook with :07 seconds left on the clock knotted the game at 36-36 heading into the break.

Both teams shot well from the field in the half as BSU was 14-of-27 (.519) while the Wildcats hit on 44.8 percent of their shots (13-of-29).

Just as they did in the first half, Cook and Schoepf combined for the first four points of the second half for the Wildcats to push its lead to 40-36 just 1:00 into the half. The Beavers went on a 7-0 lead to match its largest lead of the game of three-points, 43-40 capped off by a three point play by Peterson.

BSU pushed its lead to as large as four points with 14:57 left in the game but the Beavers offense went cold and the Wildcats outscored the Beavers 22-7 to push their lead to the largest of the game, 11-points, 69-58 with just under four minutes remaining. The Beavers tried to mount a comeback as they cut the Wildcat lead down to two points with :08 seconds left but two free-throws by Jennifer Yee with :06 second left in the game sealed the three point win for the Wildcats, 79-76.

BSU finished the contest shooting 43.3 percent from the field (26-60), 4-of-9 (.444) from the three-point line and 20-of-29 from the free-throw line (.690) while Wayne State was 42.6 percent from the field (23-54), 7-of-22 from behind the arc (.318) and 26-of-35 from the charity stripe (.743).

With the loss Bemidji State falls to 12-20 all-time versus Wayne State and it snaps a three game winning streak the Beavers currently held over Wayne State.

The loss leaves BSU with a 10-9 mark on the season and 6-4 in the NSIC. Wayne State College improves to 14-5 overall and 7-3 in league play.

Bemidji State will be in action again Saturday night as they will travel to Marshall, Minn. to take on the Southwest Minnesota State University Mustangs from the R/A Facility. Game time is set for 6:00 p.m.

Bemidji State University, located in Bemidji, Minn., is an NCAA Division II institution and a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).

--beavers--