ORANGE CITY, Iowa – The Northwestern College women’s basketball team (3-0, 0-0 GPAC) kicked off the Pizza Ranch Classic with a dominating win over the Vikings of Valley City State University (2-2, 0-0 NSAA) 81-38.
“A great overall team effort for us tonight,” stated Head Coach Kristin Rotert. “we were very connected on the defensive end of the floor which allowed us to get stops and run in transition. Offensively, we shared the ball really well and found open shooters. Emilee Danner was one of many who played well for us tonight, making lots of plays on both ends of the floor.”
The first quarter saw some efficient shooting from the Raiders and their defense held the Vikings to 21% from the field. Sophomore post Molly Schany (Emmetsburg, Iowa/Emmetsburg) paced the Raiders offensively with 10 first quarter points.
The second quarter saw more of the same from the Raider offense which shot 60% for the quarter. The defense held VCSU to 31% shooting and forced four turnovers. Jada Cunningham (Sr., Sioux Falls, S.D./Washington) continued to shoot it well from deep adding two three-pointers to lead the Raiders with six for the quarter. Northwestern led 49-20 at the half.
The Raiders would not let up coming out of the halftime break holding the Vikings to six third quarter points. Emilee Danner (Jr., Westside, Iowa/Ar-We-Va) would fill up the scoring column with nine quarter points as the Raiders continued to stretch out their lead.
Danner would again lead the Raiders with nine fourth quarter points as they continued to run away with the win. The defense would hold the Vikings to 25% from the field for the final frame to seal the 81-38 win.
For the game the Raiders shot an impressive 50% including 42.9% from beyond the arc. Danner paced the Raiders with 22 points on an impressive 10-11 from the field. She also chipped in five blocks, four steals, and seven rebounds. Maddie Jones (Jr., Twin Lakes, Iowa/South Central Calhoun) led the Raiders on the boards with 10. Senior Taylor VanderVelde (Sioux Falls, S.D./Washington) finished with a game high five assists. Schany finished with 16 points and five rebounds.
Up Next: The Raiders will return to the court tomorrow to conclude the Pizza Ranch Classic and will take on the No. 4-ranked Marian University Knights at 4 p.m.
