Mankato, MN -- The North Central University (NCU) women's basketball team came out the gates with something to prove in this match-up against Bethany Lutheran (BLC). A victory would earn them the second seed in the UMAC Tournament and a home game for Wednesday's playoff match. DowntownU defeated their recent conference rivals in a hard-earned battle, finishing 79-68.

A first-quarter fire ignited early in the Ram's offense as they tacked on a 13-point run four minutes into the game. Mia Mabanag led the charge with back-to-back buckets and Bryce Brewster quickly followed baskets of her own. Fighting hard to close the gap, BLC's Younge was the only player able to sink any shots for the Vikings leading into the second quarter. From there it was an offensive back-and-forth battle with Kaitlyn VanderPloeg cleaning the glass on the defensive end. North Central went into the locker room with the competitive advantage, leading 35-30.

For the next ten minutes of gameplay, both teams would score in streaks. Vikings would narrow the gap to a two-possession deficit, and the Blue and Gold would respond to maintain the lead. It wasn't until Destiny Hines sunk two threes from downtown which allowed NCU to grow the lead to 9 going into the final quarter. Joelle Talso kept the team at a steady pace as the Rams were spreading and moving the ball fluidly on the offensive attack.. North Central did not relent control the entire quarter proving that this team is ready for a high-pressure playoff run. NCU huddled in celebration after beating Bethany 79-68.  
 
Click here to see today's stats 

Top Performers:

Mia Mabanag (Danville, CA): 17 points and  3 assists
Joelle Talso (Ramsey, MN): 16 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists
Kaitlyn VanderPloeg (Clear Lake, IA): 9 points, 16 rebounds, and 2 blocks
 
Looking Ahead:

Women's Basketball has the well-earned privilege of competing in the UMAC Playoffs as a top-ranked team this coming Wednesday. As the number two seed, our Rams will host the semi-final match in the hopes of continuing on Saturday.

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