Wayne State 72 MSU Moorhead 70 OT

Laquisha Cook hit a 15 foot jumper as time expired to give Wayne State a 72-70 overtime victory over MSU Moorhead on Saturday evening in Wayne.  Wayne State moves to 13-5 overall and 6-3 in the NSIC with the win.  MSU Moorhead falls to 11-7 overall and 5-4 in the NSIC with the loss.

Both teams struggled offensively in the first half.  Wayne State led by as many as eight points in the first half, but MSU Moorhead scored the final 11 points of the half to take a 30-28 lead into the halftime break.  The offense picked up for both teams in the second half.  Wayne State hit 12 of 26 shots for 46.2 percent while Moorhead hit 13 of 25 shots for 52 percent in the second half.  Moorhead led by as many as seven points in the second half.  However, Wayne State rallied and a Kylee McGill three pointer with just under three minutes to play tied the game at 58.  Jessica Fesenmaier scored for Moorhead to give the Dragons a 60-58 lead.  However, McGill responded to score for Wayne State to tie the game at 60.  Both teams missed jump shots in the final minute to send the game into overtime.

The game continued to go back and forth in the overtime period with four ties.  Mara Hjelle scored to give Wayne State a 70-68 lead with just under a minute to play.  Jessica FEsenmaier then scored for the Dragons to tie the game at 70.  After a missed jump shot by Wayne State and a turnover by MSU Moorhead, Wayne State got the ball back with six seconds remaining.  After a Wayne State timeout, Kylee McGill found an open Laquisha Cook who hit a jumper from just to the right of the free throw line to give the WIldcats the 72-70 victory. 

Wayne State shot 41.8 percent from the field on the game while MSU Moorhead shot 41.1 percent on the evening.  The 'Cats hit 11 three pointers on the evening compared to only three for the Dragons.  Moorhead had a 49-39 rebounding advantage. 

Kylee McGill scored a career-high 23 points and pulled down 14 rebounds to lead Wayne State in the win.  Jennifer Yee added 14 points and Laquisha Cook had 13 points including the game winner for the Wildcats.  Teresa Case dished out seven assists to lead Wayne State.  Jessica Fesenmaier had 20 points to lead Moorhead in the loss.  Allison Swenson had 16 points and Katie Walden had a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Dragons.

Wayne State will be back in action next weekend hosting Bemidji State and Minnesota, Crookston.  Both games are set for 6 p.m. at Rice Auditorium here in Wayne.