St. Cloud, Minn. --- The Minnesota State women's basketball team fell to St Cloud State on Saturday afternoon, 62-57, in St. Cloud, Minn.

With the loss, the Mavericks overall record falls to 3-7 overall and 2-4 in NSIC play.

In the first frame of action, the Huskies built its largest lead of the first half, 13-7, with 2:16 left in the first quarter. However, MSU answered right back with a run of its own, as the Mavericks mustered off a 7-0 run to give them a 14-13 lead with 39 seconds left. At the end of the quarter, SCSU led 15-14, as the Mavericks shot 46% from the field, while the Huskies were held to a 35% field goal percentage.

In the second quarter, it was more of the same between both teams as both teams traded baskets for the majority of the quarter. MSU held its largest lead of the half at the halftime, as it led 27-24 against SCSU.

The first half saw six lead changes and three ties, as MSU shot 39% from the field and SCSU connected on 29% of its field-goal attempts. The Huskies outrebounded the Mavericks, 23-20 in the first half, while MSU outscored SCSU on the bench, 7-2, and points in the paint, 16-12.

Sophomore Claire Ziegler (Mankato, Minn.] led the charge for the Mavericks in the first half, as she recorded nine points, six rebounds and two steals. Senior center McKenzie Hoelmenn [Lakeville, Minn.] added four points and four rebounds, while junior point guard Britney Scherber [Bloomington, Minn.] chipped in with four points and two rebounds as well.

In the third quarter there was two more lead changes and four ties between the Mavericks and Huskies. At the end of the three quarters, both teams were all tied up at 42-42 heading into the fourth quarter. Hoelmenn led the way for MSU in the quarter as she added six more points to her stat line.

In the fourth quarter it was a game of runs, as Hoelmenn scored the first basket of the quarter to give the Mavericks a 44-42 lead. The Huskies rallied off the next 10 points in the quarter to give them a 52-44 lead with 5:32 left in the game. MSU wouldn't go away though, as it fought back and went on an 8-2 run to trim SCSU's lead down to two, 54-52, with 2:05 left in the fourth. That was the closest MSU got to the lead the rest of the way, as SCSU scored the next five points to give the Huskies a 59-52 lead with 56 seconds left to play. The Huskies late 5-0 run proved to be too much for the Mavericks to withstand, as MSU fell to SCSU 62-57.

Overall, the Huskies shot slightly better than the Mavericks in the contest, as SCSU posted a 36% field goal percentage, while MSU nailed 35% of its shots from the field. Both teams struggled from beyond the arc as each team combined for five made three-pointers in the game. The Mavericks shot 11% (2-18) from three, while the Huskies tallied a 23% (3-13) three-point percentage.

Both teams stayed pretty even on the boards as MSU grabbed 42 rebounds, including 13 offensive, while SCSU pulled down 44 rebounds, including 16 offensive. The difference in the ball game came down to turnovers and points off turnovers. The Mavericks turned the ball over 17 times that translated to 18 points off turnovers for the Huskies, while MSU recorded nine points off of SCSU's 11 turnovers in the game.

Ziegler finished just shy of recording her third double-double on the season, as she finished the game with a game-high 18 points and nine rebounds. Ziegler also connected on 8-of-12 of her field-goal attempts in the loss and added a team-high three steals. Hoelmenn also fell just shy of recording her fourth double-double this season, as she ended with 12 points and nine rebounds.

Junior forward Karina Schroeder [Lake Crystal, Minn.] and sophomore guard Logan Anderson [Clear Lake, Minn.] gave the Mavericks a spark on the bench in the game, as Schroeder tallied seven rebounds, five points and three assists, while Anderson added eight points, including two made three-pointers.

MSU will continue its weekend road trip with a NSIC contest against Minnesota Duluth on Sunday in Duluth, Minn. Game time is set for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off.