SIOUX CITY, Iowa – Riding a six-game win streak into the contest, the No. 10 Dakota Wesleyan University women's basketball team took care of No. 15 Morningside College, 92-77 in a Great Plains Athletic Conference battle Wednesday in Sioux City, Iowa.
Both teams traded 3-pointers in the first four minutes of play as they were tied at three with 6:30 left in the opening quarter. The Tigers (23-4, 14-3 GPAC) found their offensive rhythm as Rylie Osthus (De Smet, S.D.) and Ashley Bray (Anoka, Minn.) each drained a jump shot. Moments later, Sarah Carr (Huron, S.D.) scored four-straight points, followed by an Amber Bray (Anoka, Minn.) 3-pointer to give DWU an 18-11 lead.
The Mustangs (18-9, 11-6 GPAC) answered with a three-point shot of their own to cut into the DWU lead. But Carr finished the quarter with four-straight points again to give the Tigers a 24-16 lead after one quarter.
Morningside made a 3-pointer to cut the DWU lead to single digits. However, on the next Tiger possession, Ashley Bray nailed her own 3-pointer to extend the lead back to double digits. Later in the second quarter, with the Tigers up by 12 points, Madison Mathews (Draper, S.D.) hit a three-point shot to give DWU a 15-point lead. Nearing the end of the half, Kynedi Cheeseman (Alexandria, S.D.) made a deep 3-pointer to give the Tigers a 49-32 lead at halftime.
Osthus opened up the second-half scoring for the Tigers with a layup followed by a 3-pointer by Ashley Bray. The Tigers maintained a double-digit lead for the remainder of the third quarter thanks to efficient offense that never allowed the Mustangs to put together a run.
Up by 19 points to begin the fourth quarter, Chesney Nagel (Springfield, S.D.) and Ashley Bray made back-to-back 3-pointers to extend the lead to 25 points. DWU made six-straight free throws in the waning minutes to seal the victory. The win marked the first time DWU won at Morningside since the formation of the GPAC in 2000.
Ashley Bray finished with 26 points, six rebounds and three assists, while Carr chipped in a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds off the bench. Amber Bray tallied 18 points and nine rebounds, as Cheeseman notched nine points and eight rebounds. The Tigers shot 53 percent from the field and 48 percent from three-point range. DWU outrebounded Morningside in the game, 52-22.
The Tigers host the College of Saint Mary in a GPAC matchup at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Corn Palace in Mitchell.