BISMARCK, N.D. – Minot State University forced 22 turnovers and hit 23 of 26 free throws to secure a sweep of the season series with rival University of Mary.

The Beavers took a 61-59 lead on a 3-pointer from Sarah Lester (Sr., G, Frenchtown, Mont.) with 5:12 to play in the fourth quarter and never relinquished it en route to a 75-67 win over the Marauders Friday at the McDowell Activity Center.

It was the second win in three days for the Beavers over the Marauders and evened MSU's season record at 6-6 overall and 3-3 in the Northern Sun. Minot State is now 5-3 against U-Mary since moving to NCAA Division II and closed the Marauders all-time advantage to 47-31.

"I thought we just had more energy tonight – probably both teams did – but you could see it in shoot-a-round today that we just have a little more," said MSU head coach Sheila Green Gerding.  "This one kind of got away from us a little in the third quarter, but we battled back each time and stopped their runs. We made plays to get right back into it."

Minot State needed overtime to top U-Mary Wednesday night at the Dome, but Savana Kingsbury (Sr., F, Omaha, Neb.) and Alex Haley (Jr., G, Libertyville, Ill.) mad sure the Beavers only needed regulation. Kingsbury was 5 for 6 down the stretch from the line, 9 for 10 overall in the fourth quarter from the charity strip and scored 11 of her team-high 21 points in the quarter. Haley hit two big jumpers and was 2 for 2 from the line in the fourth, scoring six of her 13 points as MSU outscored UM 23-14 in the final quarter.

"They (U-Mary) didn't really have someone who could handle Savana tonight and she responded to that by posting up hard," Green Gerding said. "She was very active and made her free throws."

While the Beavers were getting to the line, they kept the Marauders (7-7, 1-5) off-balance all night with pressure defense, forcing the 22 miscues and outscoring UM 21-8 in points off turnovers.

"Kari (Kari Clements, RFr., G, Trevor, Wis.) and Maddie (Madison Wald, Fr., G, Minot, N.D.) created some turnovers at the top of the press for us that made a big difference," said Green Gerding. "At times our press can wear teams out. Last week, we got a little worn out because of it, but tonight we had the energy to sustain it."

The second tight contest between the rivals this week featured 15 lead changes and eight ties. Until the Beavers hit their free throws, neither team led by more than seven points.

Brittney Dietz paced all scorers with 22 for the Marauders and added seven rebounds and five assists. Hannah Larson pulled down 13 rebounds to go along with nine points and four blocks in the loss for U-Mary.

Kingsbury notched her second double-double of the season with 11 rebounds to go with points and added two steals and two assists for MSU. Along with Kingsbury and Haley, Kanesha Woods (Jr., G, Little Rock, Ark.) came off the bench to net a season-high 11 points and Lester added 10 points and eight rebounds. Clements also came off the bench to score nine and helped the Beavers outscore the Marauders 22-16 in bench points.

Minot State is off until early in January as the Beavers return to NSIC play at home with Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston, Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 2 and 3. Game times are 4 p.m. both nights.

About Minot State
Minot State University is a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) and NCAA Division II offering 14 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletics programs. The NSIC is a premier NCAA DII, 16-member conference featuring teams in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa. The Beavers are the only public NCAA Division II institution in the state of North Dakota.