BOX SCORE
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. -
Alex Feeney and
Lydia Nelson each scored 17 points to lead Augustana to a 91-69 victory over Bemidji State in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference women's basketball Saturday afternoon in Sioux Falls.
The Vikings improve to 10-3 (7-2 NSIC) and the Beavers drop to 5-8 (3-5 NSIC).
Augustana received double-figure scoring performances from five different players. Besides Feeney and Nelson,
Molly Hayes had 13,
Shaunteva Ashley scored 11 and
Cami Koehn added 10.
Ashley also handed out 11 assists, notching the first double-double of her career.
Samantha Baldwin led BSU with 15 points.
The Vikings forced 33 Beaver turnovers and registered 20 steals in the win.
Emily Schulte made six steals on her own.
Augustana jumped out to a 6-0 lead after a shot in the paint by Feeney at 17:43, but BSU quickly cut its deficit scoring six consecutive points to knot the score.
Nelson helped the Vikings regain a three-point advantage, banking a long shot at 16:04, but back-to-back jumpers by the Beavers gave BSU its only lead of the game at 10-9 with 13:28 remaining in the half.
Augustana then gained momentum and used an 18-0 run to build a sturdy 28-10 lead at 5:50. Hayes led the Vikings in the charge with eight points.
The Beavers rebounded with a 10-5 run, but Augustana scored 10 of of the final 12 points of the half to hold a secure 44-22 lead at the break.
The Vikings shot 50.0 percent from the field and forced 20 Beaver turnovers in the first half.
Augustana allowed BSU to score just nine points in the first seven minutes of the second half to hold a 59-31 advantage at 12:55.
The Vikings continued to hold BSU down the stretch and built a 38-point lead--its largest of the game--after
Faith Tinklenberg made a bucket to move the score to 76-38 with 7:50 remaining.
A comfortable Viking advantage remained throughout.
Augustana connected at a 50.7-percent clip from the field in the game and scored 40 points off turnovers.
The Vikings are back in the Elmen Center tomorrow, facing Minnesota Duluth at 2 p.m.
