WINONA, Minn. – The Winona State University women's basketball team had its five-game home winning streak snapped Friday night as the Warriors fell inside McCown Gymnasium to Concordia-St. Paul, 80-68.
The Golden Bears shot an impressive 65 percent from the field while holding WSU to just a 37 percent clip.
The Warriors contained the top-ranked team in the NSIC South early in the ballgame by forcing five CSP turnovers in the first quarter and building a seven-point lead on the scoreboard. However, the Golden Bears clawed there way back from a 14-7 deficit midway through the frame and used a 10-2 run late in the period to pull in front, 19-18. CSP proceeded to hold onto the lead for the remainder of the evening.
Winona State struggled to find the basket in the second quarter as just three shots fell for the Warriors in the frame. The Golden Bears distanced themselves from WSU in the frame going 11-for-16 from the field to build a 17-point lead at the break. CSP's 10-run run late in the frame was halted by a three-point play by Sydney Lodermeier that provided a brief spark for the Warriors' before halftime.
WSU forced seven CSP turnovers in the first half of action, but only converted those miscues into five points offensively. On the flip side, the Golden Bears cashed in 10 points off five Warrior turnovers over the first two quarters.
Senior Kayla Shaefer knocked down her first two shots of the second half as the Warriors' attempted to chip away at their double-digit deficit. Allie Pickrain converted on three straight attempts herself, including a pair from downtown, to slash the CSP lead to 51-40 at the 6:39 mark.
CSP quickly snuffed out the WSU rally though, going on a seven-point run to pad its advantage back to 18 points with 3:48 left in the third quarter. The Golden Bears would eventually carry a 20-point lead into the final frame.
Winona State made one push in the fourth quarter, cutting it to a 12-point game, but the Warriors simply could not stop the Golden Bears offensively. The 80 points allowed matches a season-high for WSU which came into the game with a scoring defense that averaged less than 60 points per contest.
Pickrain tallied her fifth 20-point game of the season in the loss while going 4-for-7 from beyond the arc. Emily Kieck chipped in 10 points and three assists for WSU.
Winona State drops to 14-11 (12-9 NSIC) with the loss while the regionally-rank Golden Bears improve to 20-6 (16-5 NSIC).
The Warriors close out the regular season Saturday afternoon as they take on Minnesota State at 3:30 p.m. WSU will recognize its two seniors, Kayla Schaefer and Rachel Novotny, at the conclusion of the contest.
