WINONA, Minn. – The Winona State University women's basketball team closed the gap late - thanks in large part to four Warriors scoring in double-figures on the day - but could not overcome a lopsided second-quarter score line in falling to St. Cloud State, 69-60 on Saturday, January 15 in McCown Gymnasium.

The Huskies outscored WSU 21-10 in the second quarter of play, the only quarter that had sizable point differential in an otherwise closely contested game.  WSU led after the first ten minutes, 18-15 and outscored SCSU 16-15 in the final frame, but the Huskies did just enough in between to earn the NSIC victory.

Both teams had decent shooting efforts from the floor, with St. Cloud State registering a shooting percentage of 41.5%, just slightly better than Winona State's 37.9%.  However, the Huskies had their way at the foul line, making 18-of-26 attempts in the game, while Winona State earned just nine visits to the charity stripe, where they were 8-of-9 on the day.

In the scoring column, Winona State saw Caitlin Riley and Taylor Hustad lead the Warrior way, with both players notching 15 points. Riley did most of her damage from behind the arc, going 4-of-16 on 3-point attempts while Hustad was 6-of-9 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free throw line.

Mattie Schimenz and Emily Kieck both scored 12 points, with Kieck handing out nine assists for good measure. Kieck's nine helpers were a season-high for the team and move her to a team-leading 56 on the 2021-22 campaign.

St. Cloud State held an edge in rebounding, 37-28, while both teams had 11 turnovers in the game. Emma Fee grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Warriors.  The SCSU bench outscored the WSU reserves 22-0, as the Huskies move to 12-3 overall and 10-2 in NSIC action.  Winona State falls to 7-9 on the year, 4-8 in the NSIC.

Winona State is next in action when they travel to Minnesota State – Moorhead and Northern State University.  WSU will face the Dragons on Friday, Jan. 21 at 5:30pm and will take on the Wolves in Aberdeen at 4pm.