Minneapolis, MN -- After a loss to the Knights of Martin Luther last night, the North Central University (NCU) women's basketball team would host the Vikings from Bethany Lutheran College (BLC) in NCU's first-ever homecoming game. The teams last met on December 8th as the Rams would beat the Vikings in Mankato by a final score of 66-50. North Central was looking to get back into the win column and keep their playoff hopes alive, however, Bethany Lutheran would spoil those plans as NCU fell by a final score of 65-63.
This one would start slow as both teams would go a combined 0-7 from the field. The Rams were able to force two turnovers within the first three minutes of the game, but were unable to convert them into points on the other end. Eventually, sophomore Caitlyn Ryan drew a foul and made both free throws to put NCU on the board first. North Central would end up with a 6-4 lead, however, a three from Bethany Lutheran would disrupt their rhythm as the Vikings finished the first quarter with a 17-12 lead. The Vikings out-rebounded the Rams as they scored 7 points off second chances.
In the second quarter, North Central forced two Bethany Lutheran turnovers early once again to spark an 8-0 run for the Rams led by Caitlyn Ryan, Kaitlyn VanderPloeg, and Lydia Schroeder. This would give NCU a 20-18 lead over BLC. However, the Vikings answered right back with a layup to tie things up at 20 apiece. Fortunately for North Central, the Rams' defense would force two more turnovers en route to a 7-0 scoring run. Unfortunately, the lead for NCU was short-lived as BLC took advantage of two turnovers Rams' turnovers to go on a 10-0 run to retake a 30-27 lead. A driving layup by the Vikings would send the teams into halftime with the Rams trailing by a score of 32-29.
Looking to retake the lead, senior guard Joelle Talso would make back-to-back layups to start the second half. However, a turnover and a couple of fouls caused the Vikings to score 6 unanswered to take a five-point lead over the Rams at 38-33. NCU would be able to outscore BLC in the third quarter, however, Bethany Lutheran held on to their lead by a thread as the teams went into the fourth and final quarter with the Vikings up by one at 49-48.
Looking for a comeback win on homecoming night, the Rams forced six Vikings takeaways and scored 13 points off those turnovers. However, North Central would be just 33.3% from the field as they were not able to get into a rhythm offensively. With 2:32 left, Caitlyn Ryan completed the electric and-one to cut the deficit to just 2 points. NCU forced yet another turnover and Joelle Talso turned that into two points on the other end to knot things at 61-61 with 1:50 to play. The Vikings, however, connected on a dagger of a three to retake the lead in the final minute. Carrying her team down the stretch, Talso scored in the paint once again to make things a one-point game. A final BLC free throw make and last second desperation heave by the Rams would end this one at 65-63 in favor of the Vikings.
Top Performers:
Looking Ahead:
The women will be back at home as they host the Polars of Crown College next Friday. Tipoff is set for 5:30 pm!
All fans are encouraged to tune into the official Rams Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter pages for updates on women's basketball and all things NCU Athletics.
