Aberdeen, S.D. — In a chance to leap over Northern State in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference standings, Minnesota State fell short to the Wolves 70-57.

The Mavericks started cold, shooting 1-9 from the field, as NSU jumped out to 17-2 lead within the first seven minutes of the game. NSU’s Emily Becken led the charge dropping seven points in that run.

MSU picked up the intensity by gathering itself going on a 8-2 to cut the NSU lead to 22-12. A large part of Minnesota State’s offense was sophomore forward Ali Wilkinson, who ended the first half with ten points. Wilkinson would finish with a career-high 24 points.

With just under five minutes left in the half, sophomore Stephanie Haight drilled a three-pointer to help MSU cut the deficit to 26-19. Haight would finish the day with 11 points.

Northern State’s Emily Becken and Jodi Reinschmidt contributed for 28 of the 34 points in the first half, giving the Wolves a 34-26 halftime lead.

Minnesota State found itself struggling from the floor shooting 10-of-30 and 2-of-7 from beyond the arc through 20 minutes of play, with Northern State shooting 15-of-34 from the floor.

The second half Mavericks came out sluggish, unable to score until Wilkinson scored with 15:37 into the second half to end an 8-0 second half start for the Wolves.

MSU would find themselves down 49-38, with ten minutes remaining in the game. Northern State forward Reinschmidt ended the day with 27 points and ten rebounds.

With five minutes remaining, the Mavericks dug deep and applied their press to attempt a late comeback going on an 11-0 run, cutting the score to 61-54 Wolves. Becken would shut down that run by knocking down two free-throws, ending the day with 21 points. Northern State would fail to score a field goal in the last 6:58, making 12 free-throws in that time

MSU was outrebounded 27-40 by NSU and would finish the evening, while shooting 23-of-58 (39.7 percent).

Minnesota State (8-6, 5-5 NSIC) will continue play tomorrow at the University of Mary with a scheduled start of 6 p.m.