No. 3 Tigers rally to defeat Vikings 69-62

VALLEY CITY, N.D. – Despite scoring just six points in the first quarter, the No. 3 Dakota Wesleyan University women's basketball team tallied 22 points in the second, escaping with a 69-62 win over Valley City State University on Tuesday in Valley City, N.D.

  The Tigers (2-0) got off to a slow start in the first half, but took a 28-24 lead heading into halftime. DWU jumped out to a 34-27 lead in the third quarter, thanks to a small dose of offensive firepower from freshman Kynedi Cheeseman (Alexandria, S.D.) Later in the quarter, the Tigers took an eight point lead when former All-GPAC First Team member Erica Herrold (Dimock, S.D.) added a 3-pointer.

 DWU took their largest lead of the game with 4:27 left in the game by a pair free-throws from Ashley Bray (Anoka, Minn.) The Vikings wouldn't go down without a fight, cutting the Tiger lead to three points on a defensive foul by Sarah Carr (Huron, S.D.), which allowed Georgia Williams to make two free-throws. Two free-throws in the final seconds by Amber Bray (Anoka, Minn.) secured the victory for DWU.

 Ashley Bray led the Tigers with 13 points, while Herrold added 13. Sophomore Rylie Osthus (De Smet, S.D.) chipped in 12 points, six rebounds and three assists. Cheeseman recorded nine points and five assists in 23 minutes of action for DWU. The Tigers shot 43 percent from the field and 76 percent from the free-throw line. DWU outrebounded the Vikings 33-32.

 The Tigers travel to take on NCAA Division I South Dakota State University for an exhibition game at 6 p.m. at the Frost Arena in Brookings, S.D.