MANKATO, Minn. – The Northwestern Oklahoma State women's basketball team fell to Concordia-St. Paul, 52-45, in the NCAA Division II Tournament Central Region Quarterfinal on Friday.
The game started off as a defensive battle, as both teams traded stops early on to keep the contest deadlocked at 7-7 midway through the opening quarter. Concordia took the lead off a three, but
Kira Bass and
Summya Adigun scored on back-to-back possessions to give the Lady Rangers their first lead of the game before the Golden Bears answered back to lead at the end of the first quarter, 12-11.
Both teams continued to fight for the lead in the second period, as Bass and
Jaida Shipp attacked inside the paint and
Kennedy Hight buried a triple to give Northwestern a one-point advantage, 18-17, with five minutes to play in the first half. Concordia answered back with a 7-0 run to retake the lead, but Bass scored six straight points to keep Northwestern in it, as they trailed 29-24 heading into the locker room.
The Golden Bears quickly jumped out to a nine-point lead early in the third quarter, but the Northwestern defense locked down Concordia for the next seven minutes. The Lady Rangers cut the deficit down to four during that stretch off buckets from Bass and
Madison Denison, and Concordia closed the period on a 4-0 stretch to lead 37-29 with 10 minutes to go.
Northwestern got off to a quick start in the fourth quarter, as
Catyn Graham buried a triple and Bass continued to work inside to bring the Lady Rangers within five, but the Golden Bears pushed the lead back to eight on a three. Graham knocked down another trey to cap a 7-2 stretch midway through the quarter to bring the Concordia lead down to three with 4:44 remaining in the game. Bass and Shipp attacked inside to keep the deficit at three, but Concordia pulled away late to win, 52-45.
Bass led the Lady Rangers in scoring, assists, steals, and blocks with 23 points, five assists, a season-high five steals, and two rejections, while Denison led in rebounds with 11.
For the latest news and updates on NWOSU, follow @NWOSUAthletics on TWITTER or visit www.riderangersride.com
