MOORHEAD, Minn. – The Dragon Women's Basketball team lost 75-68 to the BSU Beavers in their conference opener at Alex Nemzek Fieldhouse Friday night.

In a tightly contested matchup, neither team led by more than eight points the entire game, and the Dragons outrebounded BSU 43-26. However, it was the Beavers' strong performance from the free-throw line (16-for-19, 84.2%) and four players scoring in double figures (Morgan Lee, 19, Kate Warmack, 18, Shannon Thompson, 17, and Samantha Baldwin, 10) that paced BSU to the win.

The Beavers got off to a quick start with Warmack hitting a short jump shot off the opening tip. Dragon sophomore forward Megan Strese tied the game with a layup off a nice feed from Jetvig out of the right corner. Strese led all Dragons in first-half scoring (9 points, 4-for-9 from the field) and rebounds (4). The Beavers started one of what would be many lead-changing runs for both squads, pulling ahead to a 7-2 lead, paced by a Shannon Thompson spot three-pointer from the top of the key.

The Dragons responded with a tough 2-3 defense, where junior guard Kaycee Charette was able to heed Coach Karla Nelson's shouts for "Hands up!" Charette led the Dragons with three of the team's six steals on the night. However, it was another 7-3 run for the Beavers prior to the first-half media time out to tie the game at 17-17.

It was the Dragons who responded out of the time out, with freshman forward Taylor Kraft hitting a three-pointer from the top of the key. Sophomore guard Haley Thomforde followed by hitting a floating jump shot to move the Dragons up 22-17. A shot clock violation against the Dragons (1 of 18 turnovers against the Dragons for the game) started another back-and-forth battle of scoring runs and leads. Senior Angie Jetvig was fouled on a layup attempt with 1:30 remaining in the first half, and sank both free-throws to move the Dragons up 29-28. Strese made one free-throw moving the Dragons ahead by two, and holding some of the momentum going into the half, but it was Shannon Thompson's 12-foot shot at the end of the half that sent the teams to the locker rooms with a 30-30 tie.

Jetvig attempted to pace the Dragons coming out of the second half, posting up between two BSU defenders in the middle of the lane for a layup. There was no answer, however, as Warmack went on an 8-point run in the first four minutes, giving BSU 40-34 lead. Haley Thomforde's jump shot started a 9-to-2 Dragon run, capped off by a pair of Jetvig free throws and a 41-40 Dragon lead with 13:06 in regulation.

The two teams began taking turns gaining and giving back the lead. Charette drove the baseline to bring the Dragons within one point at 50-49, and then drained a long-range three-pointer to give MSUM a two-point lead. But it was BSU's Samantha Baldwin answering with a three of her own with 6:49 remaining that gave BSU the lead that they never relinquished, despite a few good runs by the Dragons.

MSUM finished the game 24-for-65, 36.9%, from the field, going 7-for-23, 30.4%, from three, and 13-for-19, 68.4%, from the free throw line.

BSU shot 26-for-58, 44.8%, from the field, making 7-for-21, 33.3%, from three, and 16-for-19, 84.2%, from the free-throw line.

The Dragons will host the University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs tomorrow night at 6:00 pm in Alex Nemzek Fieldhouse.

Steve D'Eustachio's Stat of the Game: You have to go back to February 2, 2008 for the last time the Dragons lost to BSU (92-91 in OT), and back exactly five years from tonight against Concordia University, St. Paul, for the last time MSUM lost their conference opener. 



Box Score