Box Score Wayne State 64 Sioux Falls 51

            Wayne State needed a 23-12 scoring surge over Sioux Falls in the fourth quarter to finish off the pesky Cougars 64-51 in Northern Sun Conference women's basketball Saturday evening on Senior Night at Rice Auditorium in Wayne.  The Wildcats extend their season-best win streak to eight games and are now 22-6 on the year and 16-4 in the NSIC while USF falls to 14-10 and 11-9 in league play.
            The 'Cats took an early 13-6 lead in the contest and led 17-12 after one quarter.
            Both teams scored 12 points in the second quarter and struggled shooting as WSC was just 3 of 13 from the field and USF 5 of 13 as the Wildcats went into the locker room with a 29-24 lead.
            Sioux Falls had a hot start to the third quarter and took a 33-32 lead on Augusta Thramer's jumper with 4:40 to play in the third quarter. 
            The Cougars also held a one-point lead, their final of the contest, at 38-37 on a Andi Mataloni 3-pointer. 
            WSC took the lead for good at 39-38 on a Brittany Bongartz jumper as the 'Cats finished the quarter with a 41-39 lead.
            The Wildcats made six of seven shots to open the fourth quarter to establish separation from the Cougars.  Fueling the run were 3-pointers from Maggie Schulte and Evelyn Knox to give WSC their first double-digit lead of the night at 56-45 with 5:43 to play.
            WSC finished the quarter making 9 of 17 shots as the Wildcats outscored the Cougars 23-12 to finish with the 64-51 win.
            Senior center Paige Ballinger led the Wildcats with 19 points and nine rebounds followed by freshman reserve center Brittany Bongartz with 12 points.
            Wayne State finished the game making 23 of 58 shots for 39.7 percent and was just 3 of 16 behind the arc.  The 'Cats, ranked fourth in the nation in free throw percentage, struggled from the charity stripe making just 15 of 24 (62.5%).
            Augusta Thramer paced Sioux Falls in scoring with 13 points while Kaely Hummel added 10.
            The Cougars made 22 of 58 shots for 37.9 percent, going 4 of 15 from 3-point range and 3 for 8 at the free throw line.
            WSC had one more rebound than USF 39-38.  Ballinger and Maggie Schulte each grabbed nine rebounds for the Wildcats.
            Wayne State will close out the regular season on the road next weekend visiting Upper Iowa Friday night at 6 p.m. and Winona State Saturday at 4 p.m.