North Dakota State
(4-5)
Denver
(5-4)
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Dakota State | 21 | 28 | 49 |
| Denver | 23 | 33 | 56 |
12/16/2008 12:30:00 AM | Women's Basketball
DENVER, Colo.--The University of Denver gained the lead midway in the second half and never gave it back in posting a 56-49 win over North Dakota State in a women's college basketball played before 272 fans in Magness Arena on Monday, Dec. 15. The Pioneers extended their winning streak to three games.
North Dakota State (4-5) is scheduled to host Jamestown College (11-3, 1-0 Dakota Athletic Conference) at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20, in the Bison Sports Arena. The Jimmies were ranked No. 5 in the NAIA top 25 poll.
Inger Hodgson hit a three-pointer with 10:12 left to give the Bison their last lead at 39-38. The score was tied six times in the second half and the lead changed hands on two occasions.
Six-foot-two center Jerri Penley sparked NDSU as she scored 13 of her game-high 15 points in the second half. Penley grabbed nine of her career-high 14 rebounds to complete her first "double-double' of the season and third of her career.
However, Denver (5-4) went on an 8-2 run over the next 3-1/2 minutes to build a 46-41 advantage on a pair of Kaetlyn Murdoch free throws with 6:39 left. Murdoch led the Pioneers with 14 points and Sara Bents added 10 points off the bench. The DU bench tallied 36 points to NDSU's 14.
Denver hit 8 of 10 free throws in the game's final five minutes to keep the Bison at a distance down the stretch. The Pioneers connected on 15 of 21 free throws in the second half and 18 of 25 overall for 72 percent compared to 63.2 percent (12-19) for NDSU.
North Dakota State connected on only 27.1 percent from the field compared to 31.6 percent for Denver. The Bison held a 47-43 advantage in rebounding as Ashley Samuelson contributed a career-high 10 rebounds. However, NDSU committed 19 turnovers compared to 12 for the Pioneers.
Despite going five minutes without a field goal and 13 turnovers in the first half, Nicole Vigil hit a pair of free throws with 32.1 seconds left to put the Bison ahead 21-20. However, Andie Mason hit a three-pointer with eight second remaining to give Denver a 23-21 halftime lead.
