BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Elexis Martinez and Faith Ross combined for 34 points to lead Bellevue University to an 81-61 victory over Waldorf University Saturday afternoon in North Star Athletic Association play at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
With the win, the Bruins improved to 13-9 on the season and 4-2 in the NSAA. Waldorf fell to 3-16 overall and 1-6 in league play.
Martinez led the Bruins with 18 points and three rebounds. She was 6-of-9 from the field and 6-of-9 from the charity stripe. Ross drained four 3-pointers, finishing with 16 points and four rebounds.
Cassie Jones was the third Bruin in double figures, finishing with 11 points.
Morgan Straight led the Warriors with 17 points, six rebounds, and three assists. Kylie Willems added 14 points and five rebounds.
BU led 21-8 after the first quarter before both offenses came alive in the second, scoring 22 points apiece.
Led by Jones' nine points, the Bruins hit 17-of-37 shots in the first half to take a 43-30 lead heading into the intermission. Willems paced the Warriors in the opening half with eight points and four rebounds.
Highlighted by a pair of 3-pointers from Ross, the Bruins scored the first eight points of the third quarter to extend the BU lead to 21 points at 51-30.
After the Warriors battled back with a 12-2 run to climb back to within 11 points (53-42), BU closed the third stanza on an 8-2 spurt to take a 61-44 advantage heading into the final quarter.
Sparked by six points from Martinez, the Bruins pushed the lead to 25 points after going on a 13-5 run to open the fourth quarter, giving BU a commanding 74-49 edge with 5:54 left in the contest.
The Warriors never got closer than 20 points the remainder of the contest as BU cruised to the 81-61 victory.
The Bruins will battle the Warriors again next Friday, Jan. 31 when they travel to Forest City, Iowa for a 5:30 p.m. contest with WU.
