Box Score


ST. PAUL – The Northwestern women's basketball team rallied from a 10-point deficit midway through the second half, but its run was cut short as the Eagles fell to Viterbo University, 53-55 in the second game of the season.

For the second night in a row, NWC came out of the gates strong, leading by as many as seven at the 14:45 mark of the opening period. The home team's defense also held the visitors from LaCrosse, Wis. scoreless from the field during that same early stretch. The V-Hawks put up seven straight points to tie the game with just over 11 minutes left in the first half, but a Mollie Sir (Cresco, Iowa/Crestwood) make from behind the arc stretched Northwestern's lead to three. Both squads exchanged scoring jousts with neither team earning a lead larger than three until just minutes remained before intermission, when Viterbo put up late points to head into halftime with a 26-22 advantage.

The second-half saw the visiting team lead for the majority of the final 20 minutes, including a 41-31 upper hand on the Eagles at 11:30. That point marked a change in the flow of the game, as NWC began to chip away at its opponent's lead, courtesy of Kim Campbell's long-range shot followed by a pair of scores from Sir and Jessica Fife (Maple Grove, Minn./Osseo). Northwestern notched its first positive margin of the second period when Chanel Madson (Westbrook, Minn./Westbrook-Walnut Grove) nailed a three-pointer of her own with 4:11 remaining on the clock.

The V-Hawks did not stay down long, however, and pushed to even the score at 50-50 with 2:21 left in the ball game, followed by a made free-throw that secured another advantage for the guest team. #Madson# went on to posted a clutch triple to give Northwestern a two-point positive margin with just under one and a half minutes of time left on the board, but the lead proved to be the final one of the game, as Viterbo converted on a pair of offensive opportunities and Eagle turnovers to pick up their second victory of the ACR Tip-Off Tournament.

For the second consecutive night, the Purple and Gold saw Sir, Madson, and Fife take home NWC's top-scoring honors. Sir led all players with 16 points, while Madson and Fife chipped in 14 and 10 respectively. Fife also picked up her first double-double on the year as she racked up 12 boards, an even split between offensive and defensive rebounds. On the Viterbo end of the floor, the Eagle defense continued its pesky defensive trends, robbing its opponent 17 times throughout the course of the game.  

After starting off the season 1-1, Northwestern will travel to Macalester College for a 5:30 p.m. non-conference matchup in its first road game of the 2012-13 campaign.