No. 14 DWU fends off CSM

MITCHELL, S.D. – After outscoring the College of Saint Mary 29-9 in the second quarter, the No. 14 Dakota Wesleyan University women's basketball team defeated CSM, 81-65 in a Great Plains Athletic Conference matchup Thursday at the Corn Palace.

 Kynedi Cheeseman (Alexandria, S.D.) scored the first three points for DWU. Makaela Karst (Plankinton, S.D.) made a layup to put the Tigers (12-4, 5-3 GPAC) up 5-0, followed by a CSM timeout.

 The Flames (4-11, 2-7 GPAC) held DWU scoreless for nearly three minutes, until Cheeseman knocked down a pair of free throws.

 With 2:26 to play in the quarter, CSM took its' first lead of the game after a 3-pointer. However, Jessica Mieras (Sioux Falls, S.D.) answered with a jumper.

 After the Tigers held an 18-17 lead at the quarter break, DWU strung together a 19-2 run to begin the second frame that was capped off by a Cheeseman 3-pointer.

 The Flames put an end to the run with a 3-point basket of their own. But neither team scored again until two minutes later when Matti Reiner (Tripp, S.D.) made a layup. The Tigers continued to roll into halftime as they held a 47-26 advantage at the break.

 Cheeseman and Carr opened the second half with layups to get the scoring started. With just under three minutes to play in the third period, Carr knocked down a free throw to give the Tigers their biggest lead of the game at 25 points.

 Mieras kicked off the fourth quarter with consecutive layups. But the Flames came alive and went on an 11-0 run to cut the DWU lead to single digits.

 With just over three minutes to play, Carr nailed a 3-pointer to push the lead back to double digits. A Mieras layup and another Carr 3-pointer secured the victory for the Tigers to begin the new year.

 Mieras paced the Tigers with 25 points and six rebounds off the bench. Carr added a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds, as Cheeseman tallied 18 points, six assists and five rebounds.

 DWU shot 45.5% from the field and 35% from 3-point range, while holding the Flames to just 32.9% shooting from the field. The Tigers also outrebounded CSM 46-33 and forced 17 turnovers.

 The Tigers take on No. 7 Morningside College for a top-15 GPAC showdown at 2 p.m. Saturday in Sioux City, Iowa.