The Wayne State College Lady ‘Cats split their games this weekend. The ‘Cats defeated Northern State University Friday night and lost to MSU Moorhead Saturday.

The ‘Cats scored a season-high 87 points to down NSU 87-82 for an eighth consecutive win. Defense was a rare sight on the court with NSU also scoring a high 82 points. Paige Ballinger and Kacie O’Connor both had season highs to lead the team in scoring, with 25 points apiece.

At halftime, WSC led 37-31, but the second half provided an offensive explosion for both teams, with the ‘Cats scoring 50 and the Wolves ringing up 52 points.

In the third quarter, NSU trailed 50-49 with 4:26 left. Haley Moore came up with a steal and an assist in transition to O’Connor to give the momentum back to the Wildcats.

“Anytime we can turn our defense into offense, is a significant play. We talk about it a lot,” Head Coach Chris Kielsmeier said.

The fourth quarter emphasized the importance of free throw shooting, with the ‘Cats making 14 out of 15 from the charity stripe. Wayne ended up shooting over 50 percent from the floor and over 80 percent from the free throw line for the game.

Northern State shot just over 42 percent from the field and hit 18 of 21 at the charity stripe. NSU out-rebounded WSC, 40-28. Wayne edged out NSU in assists, 16-12.

Saturday night’s game against MSU Moorhead didn’t turn out as well for the Wildcats. The Dragons beat Wayne for their 15th straight win, 74-64. The Dragons have not lost a conference game this season, holding an unblemished 12-0 record.

Wayne State had a hard time from beyond the arc, hitting only two of seven attempts. The Wildcats were down at halftime 41-27, and just couldn’t find the offensive juice to get back in the game during the second half. MSU Moorhead managed 18 points off of turnovers, compared to Wayne’s 12.

Jacky Volkert led the Dragons in scoring with 19 points. Anna Martensen had a career high 22 points for the Wildcats. In bench play, MSU outscored Wayne 26-11.
“We just need to be more consistent,” Kielsmeier said when asked how WSC will bounce back from the loss.

The Lady ‘Cats will try to get back to their winning ways with a road trip to 20th-ranked Winona State Friday night at 6 p.m., and then face Upper Iowa at 4 p.m. on Saturday.