ST. CLOUD, MINN. – The Augustana women’s basketball team defeated the Huskies of St. Cloud State, 66-48, in St. Cloud, Minnesota, on Friday. The Vikings advance to an 18-3 overall record while standing 12-3 in the NSIC. SCSU moves to a 14-5 overall record while falling 11-4 in the loop. Augustana currently holds a six game win streak with its last loss being on Jan. 6 against Northern State. 

Tonight’s action began with both squads trading back-and-forth points in the opening 10 minutes of play to bring the score 9-6 in favor of the Huskies early. Augustana found its stride with a 7-0 run at the midway point of the first quarter to pull ahead with the lead. Aislinn Duffy led with six points in the paint while Aby Phipps had five points with a layup and a 3-pointer. 

Opening the second quarter ahead by seven points, AU hit the ground running into a 13-0 run to start the second quarter. A layup from SCSU’s Katrina Theis broke the scoring run while sparking a 5-0 run for the Huskies. Johanna Miller finished up scoring for Augustana in the second quarter with a trip to the charity stripe and a jumper in the paint. 

The Vikings confidently headed into halftime with a 37-20 advantage. Miller led AU at the half with nine points while being 75 percent from the free-throw line and from the field. Lauren Sees garnered three rebounds and two assists, while Phipps grasped three steals. Augustana shot an exceptional 53.6 percent from the field while St. Cloud dropped to 34.8 percent. 

Augustana cruised through the third quarter outscoring SCSU 16-11. The Huskies knocked down five shots during the third quarter while the Vikings saw nine drop. AU saw an 8-0 run to close out the quarter to grant the Vikings a 53-31 advantage heading into the fourth quarter. Augustana held off SCSU in the paint resulting in a 31.3 shooting percentage for the Huskies while the Vikings saw 50 percent of their shots fall in the third quarter. 

The final 10 minutes of play saw a slow start for both squads. Duffy opened the scoring in the fourth quarter, almost one minute later SCSU saw its first points of the quarter from behind the arc. Augustana found its footing behind the 3-point line seeing three total 3-pointers in the fourth quarter alone. SCSU caught a late momentum shift with a final 7-0 run but still fell 66-48 to the Vikings. 

Overall, Augustana was led in scoring by Michaela Jewett with 17 points and 7 rebounds. Jewett shot a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe while being 50 percent from behind the arc. In typical Kenzie Rensch fashion, the NSIC leader in total steals collected six while adding two assists and one rebound. 

Up Next
The Vikings face No. 10 Minnesota Duluth tomorrow evening in Duluth, Minnesota, with tip-off being at 5:30 p.m.