Both Wayne State basketball teams went down to defeat in action Friday at St. Cloud State.
In the women’s game, Wayne State erased a 17-point first-quarter deficit to take a three-point lead midway through the fourth quarter, only to watch St. Cloud State rally with a closing 11-2 run to win 58-52.
St. Cloud got off to a hot start, hitting 9-of-14 in the opening period and limiting WSC to 2-of-14 shooting to lead 21-4 after one period.
Wayne State rebounded in the second quarter, outscoring the Huskies 17-4 to close the deficit to 25-21 at the intermission.
St. Cloud got the lead back up to nine early in the third, but free throws by Wayne High alum Brooklyn Kruse tied the game at 38-38 going into the final period.
Wayne State took their first lead of the game with 6:44 to play on a Carsyn Boswell 3-pointer, giving the ‘Cats a 45-44 lead. A basket by Rachel Dahlen put the ‘Cats in front 47-44.
Following a SCSU 3-pointer, Wayne State’s Maya Fitzpatrick converted a three-point play with 4:57 to play giving the ‘Cats a 50-47 lead, but the Huskies scored eight straight points to retake the lead. Kruse hit two late free throws, but it was not enough as the Wildcats went down to defeat.
Fitzpatrick led Wayne State in scoring with 11 points followed by Britney Ho with 10.
Dahlen hauled in a career-best nine boards for WSC. Fitzpatrick had a career-high seven steals with four assists.
In men’s action, St. Cloud State shot 72 percent in the second half to claim a 79-61 victory over the Wildcats, dropping them to 11-8 overall and 4-8 in league action.
Wayne State led nearly the entire first half of a low-scoring opening 20 minutes of play.
A Sean Stokes 3-pointer and basket from Trey Deveaux to take a 21-15 lead, and they led by as many as seven at 26-19 on a three-point lay by Deveraux. St. Cloud rallied to take a short lead, but Alec Millender hit a late layup to make it 28-27 at the break.
Wayne State got off to a strong start in the second half, taking a five point lead at 32-27. The Huskies rallied with seven straight points for a 34-32 advantage, but Stokes drained a 3-pointer for a Wayne State 35-34 edge.
That would be the final lead of the night for the Wildcats, as the Huskies went on a roll in the second half, hitting 72 percent from the floor in final 20 minutes to outscore the Wildcats 52-33 and pull away with the win.
Deveaux and Millender each scored 21 points for Wayne State. Both were 9-of-14 shooting from the field. Deveaux hauled in seven boards for the ‘Cats to go with three blocked shots.
The Wildcat teams conclude their weekend road trip Saturday at Bemidji State with games at 3:30 and 5:30 p.m.
