MINOT, N.D. – Minot State University had two shots at tying the game, but couldn't get either to fall as the Beavers fell just short of an upset bid over the University of Sioux Falls, falling 61-58 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference women's basketball Saturday at the Minot State Dome.

The Beavers (3-21 overall, 1-17 NSIC) trailed 60-51 with under 10 seconds to play, but Kari Clements' layup attempt just missed. Sioux Falls made one of two free throws to take a three-point lead with four second to play, giving MSU one last shot.  The Beavers, however, couldn't get a good look and missed at the buzzer.

"We weren't sharp offensively last night, but our focus was much better tonight. Our execution was pretty good overall," said MSU head coach Sheila Green Gerding. "That's a credit to the kids. We gutted this one out and had our opportunities at the end. They just didn't go for us tonight."

The second quarter again proved to be the Beavers downfall as they were outscored 16-10 in the second and trailed 36-27 at the break. MSU closed the gap with a 19-14 third quarter and took its first lead since early in the game, 52-50, on a layup by Clements with 6:35 to play.

It was back and forth from there.

USF (18-4, 14-4) grabbed a 60-56 lead with 1:44 to play on a layup by Sam Knecht, but Clements hit two free throws to keep it a one possession game a minute later, setting up the final foray.

"We happy with how we played," Clements said. "Our defense was solid, it came down to better communication and we executed better there."  

The Cougars – who are tied atop the NSIC South Division – were led by Mariah Szymanski's 14 points off the bench. She hit 4 of 5 3-pointers. Kaely Hummel hit three triples on her way to 12 points in the win. USF hit nine 3-pointers in the game and outscored MSU 27-12 on triples, but took 26 from beyond the arc to do so.

Kristal Flowers was a rebound short of a double-double, scoring a team-high 14 points and adding nine boards. Clements scored 13, while Diondra Denton went 8 for 10 from the line to score 11 points and add seven rebounds for MSU.

Minot State shot 40 percent overall, including 11 of 25 in the second half and held USF to 40.4 percent shooting in the game.
The Beavers continue a four-game homestand with a pair of NSIC North Division games Friday and Saturday at the Dome taking on Minnesota Duluth and St. Cloud State.
 
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.