SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – A big run to start the second half and a balanced attack throughout propelled the Augustana women's basketball team to a comfortable 83-52 win over Minot State on Friday in the Vikings Northern Sun home-opener at the Sioux Falls Arena.
                   
The win keeps the Vikings perfect on the season, as they move to 8-0 overall and to 4-0 in the NSIC, while the Beavers even their overall record at 4-4, and fall to 1-3 in conference play.
 
The teams traded buckets early, until the Vikings went on a 7-0 run to turn an 8-7 lead into a 15-7 lead, drawing a timeout from the Beavers bench midway through the first quarter.
 
The Vikings made it a 9-0 run out of the timeout, and answered a Minot State basket with six more to make it a 15-2 run that ended with Augustana leading 23-9 before taking a 32-21 lead after one quarter.
 
While the Vikings didn't put together any significant runs in the second quarter, they did steadily build their lead, which reached as many as 21 points at 47-26 before they took a 51-32 lead into halftime after Logan O'Farrell banked in a 30-foot buzzer beater for the half's final three points.
 
The momentum of O'Farrell's buzzer-beater carried over to the second half, as Augustana scored the first 12 points of the second half to make it a 15-0 run, giving the Vikings a commanding 63-32 lead with 4 minutes, 33 seconds left in the third quarter.
 
The Beavers snapped the run and scored their first points of the third quarter with just under four minutes left in the frame, but never got close enough to threaten the Vikings for the rest of the contest.
 
Twelve different Vikings scored in the game, with O'Farrell leading a trio of Vikings in double figures with 12 points. Presley O'Farrell and Shelby Selland both finished with 11 points, with Abby Hora adding nine and Lynsey Prosser 8 points in the win. In total, the Vikings bench outscored the Beavers bench 34-8
 
The Vikings remain at home to face U-Mary on Saturday inside the Sioux Falls Arena at 6 p.m., while the Beavers head to Wayne State to take on the Wildcats.