Box Score
A late charge by the Augustana women's basketball team was not enough as the Vikings dropped their first NSIC conference game, 62-58, to U-Mary Friday night in Bismarck, N.D. A frigid first half shooting effort by the Vikings (5-of-27) put them in an early hole. The Vikings rallied, but the could never draw even, coming within 2 on four occasions late in the ballgame.
The loss, Augie's second in a row, moves the Vikings to 4-2 on the season and 0-1 in conference play. U-Mary improves to 5-1 on the year and 1-0 in the NSIC.
Down 22 at the half, the Vikings made an early charge in the second stanza. Two free throws by
Megan Doyle, who led the Vikings with a game-high 18 points, completed a 32-13 Vikings' run at the 6:59 mark and brought Augie within 3.
Each subsequent Vikings' run was thwarted by another timely basket or free throws by U-Mary.
Whitney Hofer's layup with 4:09 to play brought Augie within 2, but a U-Mary layup and free throw pushed the Marauder lead back to 5. Doyle again hit 2 free throws at 2:05 to draw the gap to 57-55, but 4 points by U-Mary's Anna Skala moved the lead back out to 5. A late Viking turnover with under a minute to play sealed any final charge.
Amy Puthoff finished the night with 11 points and 6 rebounds, while Hofer tallied 9 points and 10 rebounds.
Dani Arens had 9 rebounds and 4 blocked shots.
Skala led U-Mary with 15 points and 17 rebounds while Kayla Rogers scored 11 points.
Due to the setup of NSIC conference play, Augustana will have a quick turnaround and will play Northern State Saturday in Aberdeen, S.D. The tip is slated for 6 p.m.
