DWU Dominates Fourth Quarter to Pull Away from Doane 76-62

Crete, Neb. – Dakota Wesleyan pulled away in the fourth quarter in the second meeting of the ‘Battle of the Tigers’ to earn the 76-62 win over Doane and complete the season sweep. This marks 20 straight wins against Doane. DWU used toughness and physicality to take done the high scoring Doane offense. Morgan Edelman recorded her third double-double in the last five games. Emma Yost had a team-high 17 points to go with four rebounds and three asissts. Dakota Wesleyan moved the ball around well, leading to five Tigers scoring in double figures.

Highlighted Player– Morgan Edelman ~ 11 points 13 rebounds 2 assists

Stat Leaders:

Points – Emma Yost (17)

Assists – Shalayne Nagel (4)

Rebounds – Morgan Edelman (13)

Blocks – Shalayne Nagel (2)

Steals – Taliyah Hayes (4)

Recap – Dakota Wesleyan knew coming into today’s matchup that getting wins on the road in the GPAC is no easy feat, especially against a high scoring Doane offense. DWU won the first quarter by a slim 22-21 margin. Both teams had similar game plans that played out in the first quarter which were physicality, tough defense, and getting to the rim to score or draw fouls. DWU shot 50% from the floor and went to the foul line eight times, converting seven of those attempts, which was a big improvement from last night’s struggles from the charity stripe. Shalayne Nagel led with six points going a perfect 3-3 from the floor. She was followed by Emma Yost and Taliyah Hayes who each had five points. Dakota Wesleyan struggled to slow down GPAC leading scorer Mak Hatcliff who had 12 points in the quarter.

The second quarter saw DWU really turn up the heat on defense, holding Doane to just 10 points in the quarter and Hatcliff to just four. As usual, Christensen and company did a great job of making the necessary adjustments to slow down Hatcliff and the Doane offense. Dakota Wesleyan forced five turnovers in the half and held DOA to just 21.4% shooting in the quarter. DWU had their struggles on offense as well, only netting 16 in the quarter but knocked down the open shots when they had them. Hayes knocked down two key triples during the quarter, while Yost and Nagel continued to anchor the post. At the half DWU held a 38-31 lead.

Turnovers plagued DWU in the third quarter who had seven that resulted in 10 of Doane’s 17 points in the quarter. Dakota Wesleyan still shot a very efficient 45.5% from the floor but couldn’t overcome the turnovers. Edelman was all over the glass in the quarter with her seven boards, getting hustle rebound after hustle rebound. Going to the final quarter DWU held a five-point lead. Fourth quarter was all DWU who dominated the quarter on both ends 23-14. On the defensive side Dakota Wesleyan forced three turnovers and got two big blocks from Nagel who has been anchoring the defense all year. On the offensive side DWU was led by Edelman who completed the double-double with her nine points in the fourth. Rylee Rosenquist off the bench was a huge spark for DWU in the second half with her 11 points, including a big momentum boosting and one reverse layup. Dakota Wesleyan showed their discipline and executing a game plan on the defensive end as Hatcliff recorded zero made field goals in the entire fourth quarter leading to DWU pulling away with the 76-62 victory on the road.

Head-to-Head (Doane)