BISMARCK, N.D. - A strong first half for the University of Mary Women's Basketball team gave every indication that the weekend sweep was within reach against Concordia University-St. Paul this afternoon.
 
Unfortunately, the Marauders (12-14, 6-12 NSIC) couldn't slow down the perimeter attack as the Golden Bears (11-13, 7-11 NSIC) shot 71.3% from beyond the arc in the second half to outpace U-Mary at a 60-31 clip en route to a 96-75 decision favoring the visitors.
 
The opening frame started out with the team trading shots in the early goings as the Marauders held the early advantage at 13-8 at the 5:08 mark of the first quarter.  Concordia-St. Paul opened up the torrent with a 10-0 run over the next four minutes to lay claim of the lead at 18-13 with 1:14 remaining in the period. Rachel Weir provided the final spark of the quarter as she sunk two free throws, and after the Golden Bears got their final bucket on a layup, Weir added a buzzer-beating putback to keep the Marauders within striking distance at 20-17 heading into the second.
 
The Golden Bears kept the pressure up after taking two of the first three baskets at the start of the second quarter for a 25-20 lead at the 8:48 mark, but U-Mary enabled the lockdown and fired off a 16-0 run over the next four minutes thanks to seven points from Hannah Larson, five from Brittney Dietz, two from Dani Williams, and two from Haley Hibbs, to surge ahead with a 36-25 lead at the 4:39 mark.
 
Concordia-St. Paul would eventually respond and stay right behind the Marauders at 36-30 with 3:08 to play in the half, yet U-Mary was adamant to hold onto the lead at 44-36 going into halftime after Larson and Weir nailed their shots from long range while Dietz provided the fast break look.
 
Alas, the tale of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was apparent as the Golden Bears came out firing on all cylinders in the third quarter, seemingly connecting on two shots for every one the Marauders made, as Concordia-St. Paul took ahold of the lead by the 7:13 mark of the period behind a perimeter shot from Lauren Shifflett. The Golden Bears would eventually make 10-of-14 shots from beyond the arc in the second half.
 
U-Mary wasn't about to back down, though, as Dietz completed the classic three-point play in the final minute with a layup-and-one to keep the Golden Bears within one possession at 65-62 with 40 seconds remaining. Yet Concordia-St. Paul was insistent on their long-range shooters as Anna Schmitt provided the final say of the third with another trey to put the Golden Bears ahead at 68-62 heading into the fourth.
 
Concordia-St. Paul kept the offense rolling with a 9-2 run at the start of the final quarter for a 77-64 advantage by the 8:10 mark, and any efforts from U-Mary were in vain as they never closed within 11 points of the lead en route to the 96-75 final score.
 
Brittney Dietz ended up with 28 points on 10-for-23 shooting from the floor, her 18th game of the season reaching at least 20, to go with nine rebounds, five assists and two steals in 37 minutes played.
 
Hannah Larson provided the secondary spark as she added 16 points on a 6-for-13 mark from the floor, in addition to five rebounds, five assists, one block and one steal in 34 minutes on the court.
 
Rachel Weir rounded out the trio responsible for 80% of U-Mary's point total as she finished with 16 points on a blistering 6-for-8 mark from the field, and a perfect 2-for-2 from beyond the arc and 2-for-2 from the charity stripe, along with eight rebounds and three assists in 29 minutes played.
 
The Marauders will make their final road trip of the regular season next week as they take on Bemidji State University on Friday, February 12, starting at 6:00 PM, before visiting the University of Minnesota Crookston on Saturday, February 13, starting at 4:00 PM.
 
#marauders#