BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Kaitlyn Kennedy scored 24 points to lead the Viterbo University women's basketball team to a 72-65 victory over Bellevue University Friday night in North Star Athletic Association action at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
The loss dropped the Bruins to 8-13 on the season and 1-5 in the NSAA. Viterbo improved to 9-3 overall and 4-0 in league play.
Elexis Martinez led the Bruins with her fourth double-double of the season, finishing with 23 points and 10 rebounds, along with two blocks.
Asha Scott also recorded a double-double with 15 points and 10 boards. She added four assists and a pair of steals.
Faith Ross was the third Bruin in double figures, registering 10 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists.
Kennedy went 7-of-14 from the field and 5-of-9 from behind the arc. Chyna Young added 12 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Kacie Goss collected 11 points and four boards. Ellie Hoesley was the fourth V-Hawk in double figures, finishing with 10 points to go along with five rebounds.
BU shot just 37.1 percent from the field and was 2-of-20 from long range.
Sparked by Young's six points, the V-Hawks used an 8-0 run to take an early 16-9 lead with 3:34 left in the first quarter. The Bruins responded with a 5-0 run before Kennedy drained a 3-pointer at the buzzer to make it 19-14 after the opening 10 minutes of play.
After a pair of layups by Martinez sliced the lead to four points, the V-Hawks went on a 5-0 run to take a 29-20 advantage at the 3:20 mark of the second quarter. The margin remained at nine points until Ellie Hoesley's layup at the buzzer made it 36-25 at the intermission.
Martinez led the Bruins in the first half with 10 points and six rebounds. She went 3-of-6 from the field and was 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.
Young paced the V-Hawks in the opening half with nine points and three boards. Hoesley and Gross chipped in with seven points apiece.
The Bruins scored the first four points of the second half to cut the deficit to seven points. VU, however, extended the lead to 16 points following a 9-1 run to take a 57-41 advantage with 1:07 left in the third. A layup by Kaziah Terrell made it 57-43 heading into the final frame.
The margin remained at 14 points until BU used a 6-0 run highlighted by a 3-point play from Martinez to slice the deficit to eight points at 59-51 with 5:28 remaining in the contest.
A 3-pointer by Ross made it a five-point contest at 61-56 at the three-minute mark. The margin remained at five points following a putback by Laura Jurek to make it 65-60 with 53 seconds left in the game.
The V-Hawks nailed seven free throws in the final 48 seconds to seal the 72-65 victory.
The Bruins will host Waldorf University at 3 p.m. on Saturday (Jan. 22) in the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center.
