Box Score Wayne State 72 Minot State 52

            Junior forward Andrea Larson scored a career-high 25 points on 10 of 10 shooting from the field to lead Wayne State College in a 72-52 Northern Sun Conference women's basketball victory over Minot State Saturday evening at Rice Auditorium in Wayne.  It was the sixth straight win for the Wildcats, now 10-3 and 4-1 in the NSIC, while Minot State drops to 4-5 and 1-4 in league games.
            WSC got off to a slow start, trailing 7-3 five minutes into the game.  Larson hit a 3-pointer to end the first quarter giving Wayne State the lead for good at 14-11.
            The Wildcats started the second quarter with a 10-0 run to extend the lead to 24-11, but Minot State rallied and got as close as five points at 26-21 following a 3-pointer from Holly Johnson.  WSC then closed the final 2:25 of the half with a 9-2 run giving the 'Cats a 35-23 lead at intermission.
            Both teams scored 16 points in the third quarter.  After the Beavers closed with six at 35-29 with 6:44 to go in the quarter, WSC scored the next six points to go back up double digits at 40-29 and the 'Cats finished the third quarter with a 51-39 lead.
            The Wildcats maintained a double digit lead in the fourth quarter and Larson capped off her perfect night of shooting with a steal and layup in the final minute to make the final score 72-52.
            Larson scored a career-high 25, going 10 for 10 from the field, 2 of 2 from 3-point range and 3 for 5 at the charity stripe.  The 6-0 junior from Sperry, Iowa easily surpassed her previous career-high of 16 points vs. Jamestown College last year.  She was the lone Wildcat player in double figures.     
            Wayne State made 25 of 55 shots from the field (45.5%) and 11 for 26 behind the arc (42.3%).  The Wildcats were 11 of 15 at the free throw line.
            Holly Johnson paced Minot State with 23 points.  The Beavers were 20 for 49 from the field (40.8%) and 3 of 14 from 3-point range while going 9 for 11 at the free throw stripe.
            Minot State held a 35-26 advantage in rebounding over the Wildcats with Diondra Denton grabbing 10 boards for the Beavers while Paige Ballinger hauled in eight boards for the 'Cats.
            WSC forced 26 Minot State turnovers in the contest while the Wildcats had 11, resulting in a 32-11 edge on points off turnovers. 
            Maggie Schulte had five of Wayne State's 19 assists while Larson had a team-high three steals.  Ballinger was credited with four of the team's six blocked shots. 
            The Wildcats resume play on Tuesday, December 19 with a visit to #23 Augustana for a 6 p.m. NSIC contest in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.