MANKATO, Minn. ---  The Minnesota State women's basketball team downed Waldorf, 82-59, at Taylor Center Monday afternoon.

Minnesota State got off to a slow start on the offensive side of the floor, scoring only one point, on a made free throw from Claire Ziegler, during the opening four minutes of the game while Waldorf managed to score five points.  Out of the media timeout, Britney Scherber hit back-to-back shots, one from three-point range to get the Mavericks on a roll.  Taylor Drost came off the bench for Minnesota State and scored a quick six points to end the first quarter with the Mavericks holding a 16-15 lead over the Warriors.

Drost continued her hot play into the second quarter hitting a mid-range jumper before a Minnesota State steal led to a three-point shot from Monica Muth.  A steal followed by a Taylor Klug lay up, and a stop lead to a Klug three-point shot, helped push the Mavericks to a 34-21 lead midway through the second quarter.  The Minnesota State shooting stayed strong as another three-point shot from Klug as well as one from Scherber in the corner, giving the Mavericks a 46-37 lead going into the half.

Despite the early shooting struggles from Minnesota State they ended the half with a 47.6% to 41.9% advantage from the field and that was largely in part to the effectiveness of the bench players.  The Mavericks bench outscored the Warriors 24-0 thanks to 12 points from Klug and 10 points from Drost.

The second half started strong for Minnesota State as four straight steals led to a quick 10-0 run.  The Mavericks pressure defense made it difficult for the Warriors as the turnovers continued to mount, and the strength and depth of Minnesota State pushed the lead to 61-42 halfway through the third quarter.  The balanced attack from the Mavericks continued and at the end of the third quarter the lead had grown to 70-44 after to a total of seven turnovers from the Warriors during the quarter.  

The game slowed down significantly in the fourth quarter as the pressure defense from Minnesota State transitioned into a more traditional half-court defense and fouls became a larger factor in the game.  In the last five minutes both teams went deep into the benches with the game all but decided.

Scherber led the Mavericks in scoring with a a game-high 20 points and also contributed four steals in only 21 minutes of play while Klug added 14 points off the bench for the game.  Minnesota State ended the game with a 46.6% to 36.4% advantage in shooting percentage and finished with 40 points off the bench, compared to six points off the bench for Waldorf.  The Mavericks also held an 18-8 advantage in steals, winning points off turnovers 31-10.  

With the win, Minnesota State moves to 7-2 (3-2 NSIC) on the season. The Mavericks return to action Dec. 30 at MSU Moorhead. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m.