Jan. 22—SIOUX CITY, Iowa. — It took nearly three quarters for the Dakota Wesleyan University women’s basketball team to gain control on the road Thursday night.
But once the No. 9-ranked Tigers did midway through the third period, they never looked back in a 75-63 victory over Morningside in Great Plains Athletic Conference action at the Rosen Verdoorn Sports Center.
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In a two-point game with 5:37 left in the third quarter, Dakota Wesleyan began to take over after grinding through a back-and-forth battle for most of the night.
By the end of the third period, the Tigers earned a 60-47 lead behind a timely 17-6 scoring run heading into the final quarter. In the last 15 minutes and 37 seconds of game time, the Tigers outscored the Mustangs 32-22 for a 12-point victory and a regular-season series sweep.
In the previous meeting between Dakota Wesleyan and Morningside, the Tigers rolled to a 94-53 win in their GPAC home opener on Nov. 19 at the Corn Palace. Since then, and with the victory tonight, DWU has rattled off 13 wins in its last 15 contests and improved its winning streak to 10 games.
The Tigers (16-4, 12-2 GPAC) remain in sole possession of second place in the GPAC standings behind 13-1 Dordt.
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DWU had five players in double-figure scoring, paced by Avery Broughton with 17 points, plus eight rebounds and four assists. Emma Yost posted 15 points on 9-for-10 shooting from the free-throw line with six assists, five rebounds and two blocks, while Shalayne Nagel added 12 points and a game-high three blocks. Rylee Rosenquist had 12 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two steals, as Maleighya Estes poured in 12 points and five rebounds off the bench.
Dakota Wesleyan held the slight advantage in shooting percentage (39.4% to 39%) and rebounds (43 to 35) for the game with 15 offensive boards. The Tigers forced 14 Mustang turnovers which led to 17 points on the other end.
For Morningside (11-9, 6-8 GPAC), Lily Vollertsen led the way with a game-high 20 points and eight rebounds, while Clancy Brown offered 12 points, seven rebounds and two steals. Kinsey Hall recorded 13 points, four rebounds and two blocks off the bench, as the Mustangs shot 5-for-20 from beyond the arc and 85.7% from the free-throw line.
DWU is back on the road Saturday, Jan. 24, to face off against College of Saint Mary (Neb.) at 3 p.m. in Omaha, Nebraska.
