VALLEY CITY, N.D. -- Junior Faith Ross scored 15 points to lead the Bellevue University women's basketball team to a key, 54-50, victory at Valley City State University Friday night in North Star Athletic Association action at the W.E. Osmon Fieldhouse.
The victory secured at least a second-place finish in the NSAA final standings with two regular-season games to play. Bellevue improved to 14-5 on the season and 10-2 in the NSAA. VCSU dropped to 7-11 overall and 5-7 in league play.
Ross was 3-of-4 from behind the arc while adding three rebounds in the victory. Elexis Martinez, Lexi Allen, and Delaney VanBlaricon each finished with seven points.
Maara Nelson paced the Vikings with 20 points and eight boards. Adriana Torres added 13 points, five rebounds, and a pair of assists.
The Bruins hit 4-of-5 triples in the early going to give BU a 15-4 advantage in the opening eight minutes of play. After the Vikings responded with a pair of 3-pointers to cut the lead to five points, Ross drilled a 3-pointer in the closing seconds of the first quarter to make it 18-10 after the first 10 minutes of action.
Led by Jamie Winkler's two 3-pointers, BU finished 5-of-6 from behind the arc in the first quarter.
After a short jumper by Ross gave BU a nine-point lead, VCSU closed the half on a 10-3 run to narrow the gap to two points at 29-27 at the intermission.
Ross led the Bruins in the opening half with eight points and two rebounds. Winkler and Martinez produced six points apiece.
VCSU, who outscored the Bruins, 17-11, in the second quarter, was led in the first half by Torres who recorded 10 points, three rebounds, and two assists.
The Vikings scored the first seven points of the third quarter to grab a 34-29 lead before BU responded with a 6-2 spurt to make it a one-point contest at 36-35 with 5:30 left in the third.
Nelson scored 10 points in the third quarter and VCSU led by as many as five points before BU scored the final seven points of the quarter to take a slim 44-42 lead heading into the final stanza.
Four points from Ross extended the BU cushion to five points at 48-43 with 8:28 left in the game. The Vikings stormed back to tie the contest at 48-all capped by a 3-point play from Torres at the 5:52 mark.
The Bruins regained a three-point lead following a free throw by Shareece Smith to make it 51-48 with 2:25 left in regulation. After a missed layup by Taeha Pankey, Nelson nailed two free throws to make it a one-point contest (51-50) with 40 seconds remaining.
BU used the entire shot clock before Ross drilled a deep 3-pointer giving the Bruins a 54-50 lead with 11 ticks on the clock.
Nelson missed a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession and Laura Jurek missed a pair of free throws, to make the final, 54-50.
The Bruins will head to Dickinson, N.D. on Saturday (Feb. 13) for a 4 p.m. (CT) battle at Dickinson State University.
