Wayne, Neb. — Wayne State started slow, but used a strong ending to the second quarter and a 25-8 third quarter scoring advantage to break away from Bellevue for an 84-42 non-conference women’s basketball victory Wednesday evening at Rice Auditorium in Wayne. The Wildcats are now 2-0 while the contest was an exhibition game for the 2-4 Bruins.
Bellevue stayed close to the Wildcats early in the contest. The Bruins held an early 9-6 lead, then WSC scored the next seven points thanks to a Britney Ho three-point play and a 3-pointer by Carsyn Boswell to take a 13-9 lead.
WSC’s biggest lead of the quarter was four until a pair of Jordon Heckert free throws with 19 seconds left in the quarter gave the ‘Cats a 23-18 lead after 10 minutes of play.
Bellevue shut the down the ‘Cats for the first part of the second quarter, holding WSC scoreless until the 4:25 mark when a Brooklyn Kruse basket gave WSC a 25-23 lead. The ‘Cats then went on a scoring spree to end the first half, outscoring the Bruins 16-3 to take a 41-26 lead at intermission.
WSC put the game out of reach in the third quarter, holding the Bruins without a basket until the 3:24 mark of the third quarter. By that time, the Wildcats had outscored Bellevue 17-0 to take a 58-27 lead.
The Wildcats outscored Bellevue 25-8 in the third quarter and 18-8 in the fourth quarter to finish with an 84-42 victory in the first-ever meeting between the two schools in women’s basketball.
Wayne State made 29 of 62 shots for 46.8 percent, going 6 for 19 behind the arc. WSC was 20 for 28 at the line.
Ho produced a game-high 19 points for the Wildcats. She also grabbed a team-high eight rebounds. Delaney Clark and Jordon Heckert each hit double figures with 11 points.
Bellevue was led by Ashtyn Arnold with 11 points. The Bruins shot 12 of 45 from the field for 26.7 percent and 4 of 18 from 3-point range. Bellevue was 14 for 21 at the charity stripe.
Wayne State held a 38-33 advantage in rebounding and forced 24 turnovers on the Bruins, resulting in a 22-11 edge in points off turnovers.
Maya Fitzpatrick had six assists with Clark adding five. Heckert and Tate Norblade each recorded three steals.
The Wildcats return to action next Tuesday (November 21) when the Wildcats open Northern Sun Conference play hosting Southwest Minnesota State at 7:30 p.m. in Rice Auditorium.
