(SIOUX FALLS, S.D.) – The Minot State women's basketball team ended their 2019-2020 season at the Sioux Falls Cougars by a score of 83-52 in the first round of the NSIC Tournament. The Beavers challenged the NSIC South Division champion Cougars through the first half before USF stepped on the gas in the second twenty minutes.
 
Minot State trailed by just eight points after the first quarter and outscored Sioux Falls 16-15 in the second stanza. Despite the competitiveness in the first half, the second was much different. The Cougars held Minot State to nine points in the frame while they scored 21 points of their own. A 28-point fourth quarter sealed the deal for USF as the top-seed advanced to the Pentagon.
 
The Beavers were led by senior leader Mariah Payne with 15 points and four rebounds. Mollie Wilson was the only other MSU player to finish in double-figures with 11. Wilson also cleaned up the glass for Minot State with a team-high nine rebounds.
 
Sioux Falls had three players score more than ten points including Mariah Szymanski with 21, Jessie Geer with 13, and Kaely Hummel with 11. The Cougars' rebounding effort was charged by Jacie Huinker's 10-board night. Augusta Thramer helped out on offense with five assists.
 
Minot State's finishes the season with a 7-20 overall record and a 4-18 mark in the NSIC.