December 29, 2018

ORANGE CITY, Iowa – Dakota State (S.D.) faced an NAIA nationally-ranked team for the second straight day Saturday afternoon in the Pizza Ranch Classic, hosted by Northwestern (Iowa) at Bultman Center.  No. 5-ranked Red Raiders opened up the game with an 11-0 run and never looked back, rolling to a 103-52 victory over the Lady T's.

Dakota State dipped their overall record to 1-12.  Northwestern won their 11th straight game, raising their overall record to 14-1.

The Red Raiders kept the Lady T's scoreless for the first three-plus minutes of the game, fueling to an 11-0 lead with 7:07 on the clock.  Jessi Giles ended DSU's scoring drought with a field goal with 6:41 on the clock (Lady T's trailed 11-2).

Northwestern shot 66.7 percent from the field (12-of-18) in the first ten minutes of the game to grab a 31-14 lead over Dakota State.  DSU was 4-of-10 field goals (40 percent).

The Red Raiders widen their lead to 59-31 by halftime and outscored the Lady T's 26-5 in the third quarter for an 85-36 lead.

Giles led the Lady T's with 17 points on her 7-of-12 field goal shooting.  She also stole the ball twice.  Raven Patton tallied 10 points off the bench, collected four rebounds and recorded a steal.  Cassie Hand scored nine points.  Ashlyn Macdonald had five points and grabbed three rebounds.  Alexis Evans had four points and a block.

All five NWIA starters scored in double digits, led by Sammy Blum with 17 points.  Kassidy De Jong added 16 points.  Darbi Gustafson produced a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds.  She also had two blocks and two steals.  Haley Birks had 13 points.  Breanna Schuiteman had 10 points.  Birks, Blum and Alexis Toering each contributed four assists.

Northwestern shot a sizzling 56.3 percent overall from the field (40-of-71) compared to Dakota State 35.8 percent (19-of-53).  Both teams made six 3-pointers in the game.

The Red Raiders went 17-of-25 from the free-throw line (68 percent), while the Lady T's were 8-of-13 free-throws (61.5 percent).

NWIA outrebounded DSU 44-25, including 15-6 on offensive board.  The Red Raiders outscored the Lady T's 21-4 in second chance points.

Dakota State looks to swing in the New Year in the winning column as they return home.  The Lady T's begin their full slate of North Star Athletic Association conference action Friday evening, hosting Presentation (S.D.).  Tip-off is slated for 5:30 p.m. at DSU Fieldhouse in Madison, S.D.

DSU welcomes Dickinson State (N.D.) in another North Star contest next Saturday (Jan. 5) at 3 p.m.

Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director