NORTH PARK, ILL. – A balanced scoring attack from Manchester University very nearly led the Spartans to their first win of the 2016-17 campaign Saturday, Nov. 26.

Paced by a pair of 12-point efforts from junior forward Samantha Bolen (Greenwood, Ind.) and freshman guard Nicole Weaver (Fort Wayne, Ind.) to go along with 10 points from sophomore forward Beth Schaefer (Fort Wayne, Ind.), the Spartans gave the unbeaten and North Park University Thanksgiving Classic host Vikings all they could handle inside the NPU Gymnasium at Carlson Tower.

Coach Josh Dzurick's squad held the upper hand in scoring column totals in three of the four periods, but the home side used a 27-11 second quarter skein to lead 42-27 at the break. Even with the visitors holding a 31-25 second half advantage, North Park managed the 67-58 decision. A 27-5 stretch for North Park that lasted almost eight minutes in the pivotal second frame proved to be the difference.

Adding to the positives for the Spartans were a hard-nosed nine-rebound afternoon for freshman guard Haley Farris (Sharpsville, Ind.); two assists each for sophomore guard Isabella Zoog (Brownsburg, Ind.) and freshman forward/guard Hannah Newby (Danville, Ind.); and three treys from Weaver.

MU resumes their stay in the Chicagoland area Sunday, Nov. 27. They take on North Central University of Naperville, Ill., at 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.