New Ulm, MN - The MLC women's basketball team squared off with Luther College on Wednesday evening in a home contest. The Knights beat the Norse 62-47 last season at their place, limiting Luther to under 30 percent shooting for the game. Tonight, the Norse had more success on offense, especially in the second half, shooting over 45 percent to defeat MLC 75-60.

Luther received big outings from Haylie Strum (17 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists) and Natalie Beaver (21 points, 9 rebounds, 6 steals), and outscored MLC 48-25 in the second half.

After Luther went up 6-0 to begin the contest, neither team would go up by more than three points in the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Knights got some more shots to fall and went up by as many as nine points, with Ava Stein and Wilhelmina Wenz leading the charge for the Knights. However, the Norse went on an 11-0 run to close out the first half, going up 27-25.

Luther carried that run over into the third period and had a 10-2 run within the first three minutes of the second half. Luther shared the ball well, finishing with 17 team assists, and had a lot of back-door opportunities that led to easy buckets.

Just as the Norse had gone up 49-34, MLC went on a scoring barrage led by Mya Morris, who scored eight quick points, including a couple of 3-pointers. Wenz and Lydia Feidt added two more 3-pointers and were able to make it a 6-point game. MLC cut it to five points (53-48) at the end of the third after shooting almost 60 percent in the quarter.

In the fourth, Luther connected on three different shots behind the arc and continued their solid passing and ball movement, and it was too much for the Knights to overcome, as the Norse picked it up defensively as well.

Morris had 24 points and nailed five 3-pointers and did her damage mostly in the second half. Wenz finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, and four shots from beyond the arc. Stein recorded 11 points, and Feidt was impactful defensively once again with seven steals.

MLC now goes on the road to play Carleton on Friday, December 12, at 5 p.m.