BISMARCK, N.D. -- Seniors Kristal Flowers and Holly Johnson combined to score 27 points, but Mary shot 52.4 percent from the three-point line on its way to a 70-45 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference victory over Minot State on Tuesday in the McDowell Activity Center.

Mary, which improved to 5-7 overall and 1-5 in the NSIC, made 11-of-21 three-point attempts for the game led by Macy Williams who converted 6-of-7 from deep. Williams finished with a game-high 20 points in leading the Marauders to their first conference win of the season.

Flowers led Minot State with 14 points, while Johnson added 13 points but the Beavers got a combined 18 points from the rest of the team. Mariah Payne added nine points off the Minot State bench.

Flowers added a team-high seven rebounds for the Beavers, while Diondra Denton added five points and six rebounds.

Minot State, which dropped to 4-6 on the season and 1-5 in league play, was limited to 31.4 percent shooting from the field for the game.

Mary shot 64.3 percent from the floor in the first quarter as it raced out to a 24-17 lead.

Payne tied the game at 9-9 with a three-pointer with 4:54 to play in the opening quarter, but Mary responded with a 7-0 run to push the lead to 16-9 at the 3:06 mark of the first quarter.

The Beavers got to within 17-14 following a layup by Flowers, but Mary used a 6-0 run to increase the lead to 23-14 with 1:25 remaining in the first quarter. Payne answered with a three-pointer for Minot State, but Gabbie Bohl converted a free throw giving the Marauders a 24-17 lead.

Minot State climbed to within 30-26 at the 2:40 mark of the second quarter on a three-point play by Johnson, but the Marauders reeled off a 5-0 run to end the quarter and took a 35-26 lead into the intermission.

After a layup by Johnson trimmed the Mary lead to 37-30 early in the third quarter the Marauders used an 8-1 run to push the lead to 45-31 with 4:43 to play in the third quarter.

The Beavers were unable to get the deficit under 10 points for the remainder of the game and Mary took its largest lead of the game at 68-42 on a three-pointer by Williams at the 3:58 mark of the fourth quarter.

Minot State will return to action on Dec. 30 when it hosts St. Cloud State in an NSIC contest at 4 p.m. in the Minot State Dome.