Battling icy shooting the Central College women's basketball team went on a late second-half surge but it wasn't enough as Luther College toppled the Dutch 64-46 Wednesday night.
Down 31-13 at the half, the Dutch shot an arctic 14 percent from the floor before intermission. The Norse extended the lead to 26 before Central went on a 16-2 run at 9:22 to narrow the gap to 12. But it was too late in the game for the Dutch as Luther held on with a 10-4 run.
Central (3-9, 0-3 conference) improved its shooting to 37.9 percent in the second half and matched Luther (5-7, 1-2 conference) with 33 points.
"We played with more intensity and did some of the little things better," coach Jerry Nikkel said. "But we have to find a way to get the shots in the hoop."
Guard Sarah Paulson led the Dutch offense with 16 points in her first game of the season after spending the fall semester in Europe through the Central Abroad program.
"We're glad to have her back," Nikkel said. "She started out a little slow but did well once she got going and she didn't take any bad shots in the second half.
Nikkel also highlighted the chemistry between Paulson and freshman guard Annie Sarcone.
"I thought they played very well together in the second half pushing the offense and defending well," Nikkel said.
Forward AJ Baker added seven points and five rebounds. Forwards Haley Brillhart and Nicole Strasko each had five rebounds. Baker and Brillhart also charted four steals.
Although the Norse outrebounded the Dutch 43-32, Central won the turnover battle committing 23 compared to Luther's 32.
With the remainder of the season against conference play, Central hosts Coe College in a women's-men's doubleheader Saturday in P.H. Kuyper Gymnasium starting at 2 p.m.
Edging past Dubuque in a 63-60 win Wednesday for their seventh-straight victory, the Kohawks sport a 10-2 overall and 3-1 conference record.
"Coe has everyone back and is one of the top three teams in the conference," Nikkel said. "But Luther lost to Coe by just one point earlier in the season. If we play hard we'll have a chance for an upset."