Sioux Falls, S.D. – The Minnesota State women's basketball team lost 87-78 against the Augustana Vikings Friday night at the Sanford Pentagon.
 
With the loss, the Mavericks drop to 13-10 (10-9 NSIC), while the Vikings improve to 14-9 (10-9 NSIC).
 
The Vikings found early success from beyond the arc in the opening minutes of the game, building a 13-5 lead with 4:24 to go in the first quarter.  Augustana extended its lead to 25-13 by the end of the quarter with a three-pointer that came at the shot clock buzzer. 

The second quarter featured stretches of small runs from each team with the Mavericks outscoring the Vikings 20-19, cutting the Augustana lead to 44-33 at the half. 

Kristi Fett led the Mavericks with eight points, three rebounds and three steals in the first half while Maddy Olson, Kirstin Klitzke and Brooke Tonsfeldt each added five points.  As a team, Minnesota State shot 48.1% from the field but turned the ball over 15 times. 

In the third quarter MSU managed to work the Augustana lead down to as few as nine points, but a run from the Vikings in the final minutes propelled them into a 66-55 lead going into the fourth. 

The fourth quarter started evenly, but an 8-0 run from the Mavericks over a two-minute stretch cut the Vikings lead to 72-67 with 3:27 to go.  Once again, the teams traded baskets and with 1:41 to go the Augustana lead was still five points before they finished the game on an 8-3 run to earn the 87-78 victory.

Joey Batt led the Mavericks in scoring with 20 points while Fett finished with a double-double scoring 14 points and adding 13 boards.  As a team, Minnesota State shot an impressive 49.2 % from the field but lost the turnover battle 28-18
 
The Mavericks will travel to Wayne, Neb., Tomorrow to take on the Wayne State Wildcats with tip-off scheduled for 3:30 p.m.