#11 Tigers drop tough back and forth road matchup against #5 Defenders

Sioux Center, Iowa – The #11 Dakota Wesleyan women's basketball team fell to the #5 Dordt Defenders 75-65 in a close back and forth game. The game got out of reach in the closing minutes but was a close back and forth battle for the majority of the game. Morgan Edelman led the Tigers with a career-high of 17 points. DWU had four players with 13+ points in the contest (Cambpell, Edelman, Reiner and Ihnen). Tigers drop to 7-3 (4-3 GPAC) while the Defenders stay perfect at 12-0 (7-0 GPAC).

Highlighted Player– Morgan Edelman  17 points  3 rebounds  1 assist

Stat Leaders:

Points –  Morgan Edelman (17)

Assists – Matti Reiner (4)

Rebounds – Jada Campbell (9)

Blocks – Jada Campbell & Aspen Hansen (1)

Steals – Aspen Hansen, Jada Campbell & Isabel Ihnen (1)

Recap –

DWU dropped a tough road matchup 75-65 against the undefeated Defenders. The game was close throughout the first three and a half quarters only getting out of reach in the closing half of the fourth quarter. Dakota Wesleyan midway through the third quarter even held a five-point lead (largest of the game). Tigers shot 26-60 (43.4%) from the field, 4-12 (33.3%) from behind the arc and 9-12 (75%) from the stripe. Similar to the Jamestown game earlier in the year the main difference in this game was the deep range shots. DWU went 4-12 compared to the Defenders going 11-24.

The Tigers were outscored 24-21 in the first quarter. Dordt jumped out to an early 12-2 lead on the Tigers with Reiner scoring the lone bucket during that span. DWU closed the gap to four thanks to a converted and one from Reiner and three ball by Ihnen making it 12-8. Dakota Wesleyan pulled within one point at the 3:37 mark after an Edelman jumper. Both sides traded buckets to close out the quarter for a 24-21 DU lead.

Second quarter showed the Tigers slightly being outscored 18-17 for a halftime score of 42-38. DWU never claimed the lead during the quarter but always kept the Defenders within reach, answering with a basket of their own every time the Defenders would try and make a run and pull away. Reiner and Ihnen led the Tigers with 10 points apiece in the half with Campbell adding seven of her own.

The back and forth match continued in the third but this time the Tigers slightly winning the quarter by a margin of 15-14. DWU turned up the heat on the defensive side playing their brand of physical basketball to slow down the Defenders offense. Dordt leaned on the perimeter shooting to make up any ground and regain their lead during DWU runs. The Tigers held a six-point lead halfway through the quarter after a couple converted free throws by Ihnen. The Defenders closed the remaining 5:00 in the quarter on a 12-4 run to regain a slim 56-53 lead heading to the final quarter.

Fourth quarter was all Defenders winning the quarter by the biggest margin of all the quarters, 19-12 (7 points). Tigers dialed up their perimeter defense only allowing two made field goals behind the arc, but just couldn't get the timely baskets to fall for a 75-65 final score in Sioux Center, Iowa.

Head-to-Head (Dordt University)

• DWU is 45-28 all-time against DU with today's loss.
• Last time the two teams met was February 26^th in the GPAC semifinals with the Tigers grabbing the 69-59 win.

Up Next

• Dakota Wesleyan women's basketball next has Northwestern in Orange City, Iowa December 15^th with tipoff at 6:00 p.m.