Box Score
Grand Forks, N.D. – The Idaho State women's basketball season came to an end Friday with a 78-53 loss to North Dakota in the semifinals of the Big Sky Conference tournament at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.
The Bengals struggled from the beginning of the game to make shots and finished shooting 26.3 percent from the field while the bigger UND team shot 47.3 percent.
"I think we have to give credit to North Dakota. They played very well," Head Coach
Seton Sobolewski said. "They showed up and they were ready to play. They made a lot of shots we didn't expect them to make."
The Bengals held Big Sky MVP Madi Buck to four points but Makailah Dyer scored 25 points and Mia Loyd scored 20 to lead UND to the win.
Lindsey Reed scored a game-high 27 points and she was the only Bengal in double figures.
The loss ends a season that saw the Bengals improve tremendously.
Idaho State lost their first seven games against Division I opponents, all on the road. From that point on the Bengals were14-10 including a stretch in the middle of the conference slate that saw ISU win six-of-seven.
"I am very proud of our team and the season we had," Soboleski said. "I think we exceeded a lot of people's expectations. We have a team that has a lot of toughness and heart and I think we really maximized our potential this year. I am extremely proud of our team to be in the top four in the Big Sky."
The Bengals overcame injuries and losing some of the best players in ISU history to graduation. The in-season improvement was amazing even to the players.
"I don't think anyone really expected us to make it,"
Kara Jenkins said. "We even shocked ourselves in how much we stepped up this season. We struggled in the non-conference but we played hard in conference and made it here. We have to be proud about how we played this season."
The team knows that the improvement on the court has a lot to do with the relationships they have with each other off of it.
"It was our friendship on and off the court and our heart and hard work that got us here," Reed said. "It was awesome. Looking back it was a good year and a great experience."
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