SIOUX CENTER, Iowa – After leading by a point at halftime, the Dakota Wesleyan University women's basketball team was outscored 35-24 in the second half as they lost to Dordt University, 70-60 in Great Plains Athletic Conference action Thursday in Sioux Center, Iowa.
After trailing 6-4 early, Matti Reiner (Tripp, S.D.) knocked down a mid-range jumper to tie the game. Rynn Osthus (De Smet, S.D.) gave the lead back to the Tigers (5-5, 3-5 GPAC) on the following possession as she knocked down a 3-pointer.
Moments later, Natalie Gottlob (Salem, S.D.) came off the bench and buried back-to-back jumpers to push the DWU lead to seven points. However, the Defenders (7-6, 6-4 GPAC) finished the quarter on a 9-2 run to tie the game heading to the second stanza.
The first five points of the second quarter came from Dordt as they took a 22-17 lead early on. Kaylee Kirk (Balaton, Minn.) scored the first bucket of the period for the Tigers after nearly four minutes of play to make it a three-point game.
After a pair of free throws, Haidyn Pitsch (Prior Lake, Minn.) knocked down a shot from beyond the arc to pull DWU within two points. Midway through the quarter, Reiner made a 3-pointer of her own to return the lead to DWU.
With 2:42 left to play in the half, it was Haylee Mork's (Aberdeen, S.D.) turn to join the 3-point barrage as she made one to give the Tigers a 34-28 lead. The Defenders took a momentary lead with seconds to play in the half, but Kirk made a layup off an offensive rebound to ensure a 36-35 advantage was with DWU at halftime.
Pitsch scored the first basket of the second half to kick the third frame off. Dordt regained the lead after a 3-pointer to take a 43-40 lead. After a Kirk layup pulled DWU within a point, the Defenders went on a 13-6 run to close out the quarter to take a 56-48 advantage into the final 10 minutes.
The Tigers struggled to score in the fourth quarter as their first basket came with five minutes to play off a Pitsch basket. Dordt pulled away from DWU to down the Tigers in the GPAC contest.
Kirk tallied a season-high 12 points to lead the Tigers as she added five assists, four rebounds and three steals. Reiner chipped in 11 points and eight boards, while Osthus and Pitsch each recorded 10 points. The Tigers forced 18 turnovers and finished with 15 assists.
DWU stays on the road to battle Doane University at 2 p.m. on Saturday in Crete, Neb.