Minnesota Duluth 77 Wayne State 54

            Minnesota Duluth outscored Wayne State 20-8 in the second quarter to take control and the Bulldogs remained unbeaten at home (11-0) with a 77-54 victory over the Wildcats Saturday afternoon in Northern Sun Conference women's basketball at Romano Gymnasium in Duluth, Minnesota.  The host Bulldogs improve to 19-5 and lead the NSIC with a 16-2 league mark while the Wildcats drop to 16-8 and 11-7 in the NSIC.
            The first quarter was a high scoring, back and forth 10 minutes of play with the Wildcats leading much of the quarter before ending in a 22-22 tie.
            Junior forward Erin Norling scored the first six points of the contest, giving the 'Cats an early lead. 
            Tied at 11-11, Norling drained back-to-back 3 pointers to give WSC a 17-13 lead  before the quarter ended in a tie as Norling poured in 15 first quarter points for WSC.
            The host Bulldogs then took control in the second quarter as UMD held WSC to just 3-16 shooting for 18 percent.
            WSC was down 32-28 at the midway point of the second quarter, but Minnesota Duluth closed the half with a 10-2 run and took a 42-30 lead at intermission.
            The Bulldogs used efficient shooting in the second half – 50 percent on 15-30 – and did not allow any chance of a Wildcat comeback.
            Wayne State ended the game making just 2 of 12 shots in the final quarter as UMD outscored the Wildcats 17-8 to close with a 77-54 win.
            Norling paced Wayne State in scoring with 22 points and eight rebounds.  Junior center Brittany Bongartz also reached double digits with 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
            Wayne State shot just 18 of 53 for 34 percent, including 6 for 16 behind the arc.  WSC was 12-16 at the foul line.
            Sarah Grow scored 21 points for Minnesota Duluth followed by Brooke Olson with 13.  Maesyn Thiesen and Taylor Schneider also hit double figures with 12 and 10 points.
            UMD made 31 of 66 shots for 47 percent, going 7 for 19 from the 3-point line and 8 of 12 at the free throw stripe.
            The Bulldogs held a slim 37-35 edge in rebounding over the Wildcats.  UMD held a 38-20 advantage on points in the paint and 44-13 in bench points over the Wildcats.
            The Wildcats will be at home next weekend, hosting Concordia-St. Paul Friday at 5:30 p.m. and Minnesota State Saturday at 3:30 p.m. in Rice Auditorium.