SPORTS S Women’s Basketball take the conference

By LUKE JACKSON Staff Writer

The Minnesota State, Mankato Women’s Basketball team now sits in first place in the NSIC South division after a weekend sweep on the road. The Mavs were able to take down both Wayne State and Augustana with ease which earned them the top spot in the NSIC South and gave the program its 800th win.

Mankato is currently ranked No. 14 with a record of 21-3. They are now on a seven-game win streak after beating Augustana Saturday. Augustana was in first place in the NSIC South and was on a 10game win streak prior to Mankato beating them, 83-61.

Augustana lost their footing early in the game and was never able to regain themselves. In the first quarter alone, the Mavs forced 10 turnovers and by the five-minute mark in the second quarter, they had built a staggering 15-point lead. After that five-minute mark, the Mavs built an 11–8 run and found themselves leading 45-27 going into halftime. The Mavs pushed and kept a ruling 18-point lead through the last 20 minutes of play.

Mankato has been a defensive-focused team throughout the year specializing in turnovers with a hard press. In this game, it showed. They scored 35 points from turnovers alone as the defense forced 32 turnovers throughout the game. They were able to dismantle the Auggies offense all night.

MSU Women’s Basketball extends their streak to seven straight wins after defeating Wayne State 94-80 Friday, Feb. 10 and Augustana 83-61 Saturday, Feb. 11. The Mavericks have reached their 800th win in the college’s history.

They held Augustana’s star senior forward, Aislinn Duffy, to just