Wayne State could not come back from a 29-10 second quarter deficit as Winona State held on for a 61-56 win over the Wildcats Saturday at McCown Gymnasium in Winona, Minn.
The only lead of the game for the Wildcats came on the first points of the contest with a Brittany Bongartz layup. The Wildcats went cold the rest of the first quarter, going 2-of-16 from the floor as the Warriors built a 15-8 lead.
Winona State continued to pull away, leading by as many as 29-10 midway through the second, but the Wildcats went on a 12-0 run to cut the deficit to 29-22 at the half.
The Wildcats continued to hang tough in the second half, getting as close as 46-43 on an Andrea Larson 3-pointer with :30 to go in the third period. Winona State built the lead back up to seven, but Wayne State got as close as four on two occasions, the last coming with 5:01 to go on a Kylie Hammer layup to make it 52-48.
Winona State regained the seven-point advantage before Wayne State made one last stab, getting a three-point play from Hammer to make it 59-56 with :16 left before the Warriors iced the game with a pair of free throws.
Wayne State shot a season-low 32.8 percent from the floor and was led by Hammer with 13 points and seven rebounds. Erin Norling added 12 points and Brittany Bongartz put in 11.
Wayne State held a 43-35 edge in rebounding thanks to 18 offensive boards. Hammer and Haley Vesey each grabbed seven boards to lead the Wildcats. Maggie Lowe had four assists while Larson and Vesey each had two steals.
Wayne State (5-3, 1-2 NSIC) will be at home next weekend, hosting Bemidji State Saturday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. and Minnesota Crookston Sunday afternoon in a 12:30 p.m. contest in Rice Auditorium.
