MITCHELL -- Dakota State University shot 48.1 percent from the field, but it was not enough as Dakota Wesleyan notched a 78-69 victory on Wednesday at the Corn Palace.
DWU jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead, but the Lady T's battled back to lead 10-8 in the first quarter. DSU turned up the defensive pressure and did not let DWU score a field goal during an eight-minute span. The Lady T's built their largest lead of the half, 21-14.
The Tigers broke their field goal shooting drought and eventually knotted the game at 21-21.
The Lady T's went on a 7-6 scoring run and held a 28-27 lead with just under three minutes in the half. DWU outscored the Lady T's 9-2 to end the quarter and held a 36-30 halftime lead.
DWU raced to a 44-34 lead in the first two minutes of the second half. The Lady T's used a 13-4 scoring spurt to trim the deficit to 50-47, and the Tigers scored nine straight points to go up 59-47. DSU answered with a 7-0 scoring run, but the Tigers maintained their lead for the rest of the second half.
Alyson Drooger recorded a double-double of 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Lady T's. She also had three blocks and dished out five assists. Kylie Westover added 17 points and Cassie Jacobsen scored nine.
Courtney Hulstein scored nine points off the bench for DSU. She had six rebounds. Courtney Hamblin added nine points and five boards.
All five DWU starters scored in double digits. Elizabeth Lamb had 15 points (including 8-for-8 showing at the free throw line), Taylor Piper and Kim Johnson each added 13, Amanda Hart had 12 and Brittany Hill had 11.
Lamb, Hart and Johnson each recorded six rebounds for the Tigers. Piper and Celeste Beck each had four assists. Hill recorded four steals.
DWU outrebouned the Lady T's 41-37.
DWU, which received votes to the latest NAIA Division II Women's Basketball national poll, won its fifth straight game against DSU and raised its record to 15-6.
DSU (5-10) continues its action on the road this weekend. The Lady T's play in the two-day Dakota Tip-off Classic, where four former Dakota Athletic Conference (DAC) members meet. DSU play the nationally-ranked No. 17 Jamestown (N.D.) in the semifinals on Saturday at 5 p.m. in Jamestown, N.D.
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