Box Score Wayne State 78 University of Mary 69

            Wayne State College outscored Mary 35-15 in the third quarter, turning a seven point deficit into a 14-point lead, propelling the Wildcats to a 78-69 win over the Marauders Wednesday evening in the opening round of the 2016 NSIC/Sanford Health Women's Basketball Tournament played at Rice Auditorium in Wayne.  Wayne State improves to 17-11 on the season while Mary ends the year at 15-16.
            The Wildcats struggled from the field in the first half, shooting just 25 percent (8-32) from the field.
            WSC opened the game strong, taking a 10-2 lead in the opening 3:30 of the contest.  The Wildcats, who made 6 of 16 shots in the first quarter, saw Mary chip away at the lead with WSC leading 19-18 after one quarter.
            Mary took advantage of Wayne State's poor shooting in the second quarter (2 of 16), resulting in the Marauders taking a 33-27 lead at intermission.
            The Marauders pushed the lead to seven points midway through the third quarter (41-34 with 6:46 left) before the Wildcats came storming back.
            Wayne State then scored the next 11 points in a span of 3:07, giving the Wildcats a 45-41 lead with 3:39 to play in the quarter.
            Senior guard Sadie Murren hit back-to-back treys that gave the 'Cats the lead for good at 42-41 with 4:42.
            With WSC leading 47-44, the 'Cats closed the quarter on a 15-4 run to take a 62-48 lead on a Kacie O'Connor 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter.
            The Wildcats maintained a double digit lead until Mary made one final run.  The Marauders closed to within six at 73-67 on a Hannah Larson layup with 1:36 to play.
            WSC then used a pair of Murren free throws, one from Alisa Peterson and two by O'Connor to seal the 78-69 win.
            Sophomore forward Maggie Schulte notched 24 points and 15 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season.  Junior reserve forward Alisa Peterson poured in 17 points followed by Murren with 13 and O'Connor 12.
            After going just 8 of 32 in the first half, Wayne State made 17 of 28 shots in the second half (60.7%) to finish the game 25 of 60 for 41.7 percent.  The 'Cats were 6 of 20 behind the arc and 22 for 29 (75.9%) at the foul line.
            Hannah Larson poured in a game-high 27 points to lead Mary followed by Brittney Dietz with 18. 
            The Marauders were 28 of 75 from the field for 37.3 percent, but just 3 of 20 from the 3-point line.  UM was 10 of 12 at the charity stripe.
            Wayne State won the rebounding battle 47-34 thank to Schulte's 15 rebounds while Peterson grabbed nine.
            Murren handed out seven of Wayne State's 14 assists while Schulte and Peterson each had two steals.
            The Wildcat bench held a 29-7 advantage over Mary and 13-8 second chance points.
            Wayne State now advances to the NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament quarterfinals on Sunday at 12 p.m. and will face NSIC North Division champion Northern State at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls.  The Wolves defeated Southwest Minnesota State 79-52 on Wednesday evening.