ST. PAUL - After trailing by seven points at the half, the Northwestern College women's basketball team drained 46 percent of their shots in the second half to give the fans a New Year's Eve thriller. The Eagles were defeated by the Bethel College Royals 51-53.
Throughout the first half, NWC and Bethel were matched evenly as both teams answered one another shot-for-shot until the 7:22 mark, deadlocked at 17-17. However, the Royals broke the mold in the remaining seven minutes, going on a 11-2 run, giving Bethel a 28-21 advantage at the half.
Northwestern received a kick-start to the second half from Kelsey Kosman (Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake) (Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake), who recorded eight of the Eagle's 10 points in the opening two and a half minutes. Kosman drained a three-pointer at the 17:21 mark to cap a 10-2 run, which gave NWC a 31-30 lead. The Royals put an 8-0 run of their own in the following six minutes, handing the momentum back in Bethel's court. The Eagles regained their aggressiveness and chipped away at the lead with a 10-3 run in the final minutes, but fell short 51-53.
Bethel not only owned the point advantage, but also the on the glass. The Royals edged the Eagles 44-37, with a 13-6 total on the offensive boards. This enabled Bethel to have 12 second-chance-points, compared to Northwestern's seven. Northwestern, however, edged Bethel by shooting 38 percent from the floor, compared to the Royals 30.8 percent.
The Eagles were led by Katie DeWitt (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial) (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial) who netted 28 points, alongside 10 rebounds and five blocks. Kosman added 10 points to the Eagle total as well. Kaelee Kendrick (Eagan, Minn./Bethany Academy) (Eagen, Minn./Bethany Academy) grabbed 10 boards.
Bethel's balanced scoring attack, was led by Jess Gilpin who recorded 11 points and three rebounds. Alongside Gilpin was Grejtak who tallied eight points and eight boards.
The Eagles will be in action on Friday, January 8 as they travel to New Ulm, Minn. to take on Martin Luther College. Tip-off will be 5:30 p.m.
