MARYVILLE, Mo. - The Augustana Vikings dropped its final road game of the 2023 calendar year, falling 67-63 to Northwest Missouri State on Tuesday afternoon inside Bearcat Arena.

The Vikings move to 1-9 overall, while the Bearcats jump to 10-2 overall. 

Lauren Sees led all scorers with 24 points on 8 of 13 shooting while grabbing five rebounds. She scored 15 of the 24 points in the fourth quarter. Michaela Jewett finished with 18 points on 7 of 12 shooting, including three three pointers. She grabbed six rebounds and dished a team-high four assists. Jennifer Aadland grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds and added seven points. 

The Vikings opened the game with an 8-2 run, as Aadland opened the scoring with a three before five straight Jewett points. 

After the Bearcats marched back to take a 9-8 lead with 4:49 remaining, the Vikings took charge. A CJ Adamson layup kickstarted a 9-0 run, capped by a Sees and-one, to give AU a 17-9 lead with just under a minute to go in the first quarter. 

Beginning with 40 seconds left in the first quarter, the Bearcats marched back with a 6-0 run to get within 17-15, but a pair of Adamson buckets cushioned the Viking lead to 21-15 with 7:52 remaining in the first half. 

A Payton Hardy layup with 5:38 left in the half helped AU grow its lead back to eight, and after a NWMSU layup, Sees answered with a jumper to lead 29-21. 

NWMSU closed the half strong from there, scoring the final six points to cut its deficit to 29-27 into the break. 

The Bearcats kept the fire to open the second half, scoring nine of the first 11 points to take a 36-31 lead with 7:17 left in the third quarter. After a Kenzie Rensch jumper ended the run, NWMSU sparked another with six straight points to grow its lead to 42-33. 

In the final 5:47 of the third quarter, the Vikings chipped away, going on a 9-4 run to bring the game to a 46-42 score in favor of the Bearcats into the fourth quarter. 

For AU, the fourth quarter would be the Sees show. She opened the scoring with an and-one before a Bearcat three put them back ahead by four. AU reclaimed a lead after a Jewett three and a pair of Sees free throws ,ade it 50-49 with 5:19 left. 

The game saw three lead changes in the next three scoring possessions, with a Sees layup sandwiched between Bearcat points, giving NWMSU a 53-52 lead with 3:17 remaining. 

Jewett tied the game with a free throw on the next possession, but the Bearcats came back down and hit a jumper to lead 55-53 with 2:42 left. After a free throw increased the NWMSU lead to three, Sees knocked down a huge three to tie the game at 56-56 with 1:08 left. 

The final 1:08 would be extended, with the Bearcats eventually leaking ahead 63-58 with 21 seconds to go. A Sees jumper made the game one possession, and after a pair of NWMSU free throws, Sees knocked down a pull-up three pointer to make it 65-63 with five seconds left. 

The Bearcats knocked down a pair of free throws with two seconds remaining, bringing the game to its final score. 

The Vikings will now take a holiday break, getting back in action on Dec. 30 at the Elmen Center against Northwestern (Iowa).