MITCHELL, S.D. – After starting the game down 8-0, the No. 12 Dakota Wesleyan University women's basketball team roared back with a 15-0 run and never looked back as they notched a convincing victory over Mount Marty College in Great Plains Athletic Conference action, 82-46 at the Corn Palace in Mitchell.
The Lancers (12-13, 3-13 GPAC) jumped out to an early 8-0 lead over DWU. However, the Tigers (21-4, 12-3 GPAC) used a 15-0 run to take the lead, highlighted by a Kynedi Cheeseman (Alexandria, S.D.) 3-pointer. Seconds later, Amber Bray (Anoka, Minn) caught the ball in the paint and made a layup and free throw after being fouled. Twin sister Ashley Bray (Anoka, Minn) capped off the run with a 3-pointer to make the game 15-8 in favor of the Tigers.
After ending the first quarter on a 24-4 run, DWU continued to pull away from the Lancers in the second quarter. Madison Mathews (Draper, S.D.) drained a mid-range jumper followed by a three-point shot by Rylie Osthus (De Smet, S.D.), forcing the Lancers to call a timeout. Coming out of the timeout, Ashley Bray found the bottom of the net after hitting a 3-pointer to extend the DWU lead. The Tigers took a 42-25 advantage heading to the locker room.
The Tigers came out of halftime firing on all cylinders with an 11-2 run as Ashley Bray knocked in a deep 3-pointer followed by a Cheeseman layup. In the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, sophomore Makaela Karst (Plankinton, S.D.) drove the baseline and muscled her way up for a layup. Later in the final stanza, Sarah Carr (Huron, S.D.) scored five-straight points helping push the Tigers to a fifth-straight victory.
Ashley Bray led all scorers with 22 points, while Cheeseman added 11 points and four rebounds. Amber Bray posted a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Karst chipped in 10 points off the bench and Osthus recorded nine points, six rebounds and six assists. The Tigers outrebounded the Lancers 39-23 and scored 40 points in the paint compared to 16 by Mount Marty.
DWU hits the road to battle GPAC foe Briar Cliff University at 2 p.m. on Saturday in Sioux City, Iowa.
