ABERDEEN, S.D. (Wachs Arena) (box score) - The Bemidji State University women’s basketball team made a late charge for the second night in a row, but fell short again, losing a 68-60 decision to the Northern State University Wolves at Wachs Arena. The Wolves rode a 9-point halftime lead to help salvage a season series split with the Beavers.

Bemidji State’s valiant comeback got them within four with 1:50 remaining, but Jaclyn Arns netted four of her 22 points in the final 1:50 to help the Wolves secure the win. The Wolves connected on seven more free-throw attempts than the Beavers which proved to by the major difference in the win. NSU shot 84.2 percent from the line (16-19) while the Beavers were just 69.2 percent (9-13) from the charity stripe.

Three Beavers posted double figures with Amy Lawson (Sr., PG, Spencer, Iowa) posting 18 points, including a 7-of-12 performance from the field. Heidi Matzke (Jr., G, Red Lake Falls, Minn.) added 13 points and six rebounds while Katherine Jamnick (So., C, Soudan, Minn.) reached double-figures for the second consecutive night with 11 points. Lawson led the Beavers with five assists.

A trio of players led the Wolves to the win. Jaclyn Arns posted a game-high 22 points on 7-of-15 shooting from the field, 3-of-5 from the three-point line and a perfect 5-of-5 from the free-throw line. Noelle Hall netted 14 points and grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds for the lone double-double performance of the game. Ryanne Brockhaus chipped in with 13 points and a game-high six assists in the win for the Wolves.

The first half was a back and forth contest for the majority of the half as their were five tied scores and four lead changes. Brockhaus got the Wolves on the board with a layup :55 seconds into the game. Jamnick tied the game with two free-throws :51 seconds later. The wolves held the lead for the first 10-minutes of the contest until Lawson knocked down a jumper at 9:52 of the half to put BSU up 10-9.

Jamnick’s second three-point field goal of the season with 7:52 remaining in the half gave the Beavers its largest lead of the half at 17-13. Hall would out score the Beavers 6-2 over the next 2:52 of the half which help NSU keep pace with the Beavers as the score was tied 19-19 for the fourth time of the half with 5:00 remaining until the intermission.

The final 5:00 of the half belonged to NSU as the Wolves out scored the Beavers 16-7 to gain a 35-26 lead at the half. The nine-point halftime lead was the largest for either team.

The second half began the same way the first half ended, with the Wolves dominating much of the play. NSU pushed its lead to 14-points three-times in the first 12:27 of the second half with the last time coming on two successful free-throw attempts by Ryanne Brockhaus. The Beavers would go on one last run to try and regain the lead going on a 12-2 run over a 3:42 span to close NSU’s lead to four points (59-55). Karlee Simonson (Sr., F, Rockford, Minn.) and Lawson each had five points during the Beavers run.

Lawson brought the Beavers within four of the Wolves one last time as she connected on two free-throws with 1:50 left in the game but the Wolves went 5-of-6 from the charity stripe in the final :30 seconds of the game to continue its dominance over the Beavers.

NSU made the difference in the game from the field, shooting 39 percent, while BSU shot 33 percent from the floor, but only 25 percent (5-20) from the three-point line. The Wolves shot just 4-14 (.286) from downtown but outscored BSU 28-24 in the three-second area.

The loss moves BSU to 8-8 in the NSIC and 12-13 overall, while NSU improves to 7-10 in conference play and 11-15 overall. With the loss the Beavers fall to 8-40 all-time versus the Wolves.

BSU will return home for their next two games, with conferences matches versus Winona State and Upper Iowa to end the regular season. The Beavers beat Upper Iowa on the 67-52 and Winona State 84-82 earlier this season on the road. BSU will host WSU on Feb. 22 and UIU on Feb. 23. Both games will start at 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--