The Peacock women's basketball team struggled to find success against the pressure of the Minnesota State University Moorhead Dragons on Saturday afternoon. MSUM held its visitors to single digits in three of four quarters while tallying at least 16 points in each frame for the 76-32 victory in Moorhead, Minn. The Dragons improved to 11-4 overall and 6-2 in the conference, while Upper Iowa fell to 2-12 (1-7 NSIC).
Jessica Musgrave scored a layup and a free throw to put Upper Iowa on the board 3-0 to start the game but the Dragons were able to shutout the Peacocks for the remainder of the quarter and over four minutes of the second stanza to take a commanding 27-3 lead. Caralina Apostolou finally broke the silence with a layup at the 5:46 tick of the second but MSUM continued its dominance with a 10-5 spurt to close out the half ahead 37-10.
The UIU offense picked things up in the third quarter and scored half of their total points fueled by 3-of-7 shooting from downtown. Unfortunately for the Peacocks, the Dragons were able to match the long range shots along with more to build up a 60-26 advantage with 10 minutes to go. Upper Iowa was then held to just one basket in the fourth as the game concluded with the Dragons claiming a 44-point victory.
PEACOCKS OF THE GAME…
- Jessica Musgrave led all scorers with 12 points on 3-of-9 shooting from the floor and five makes at the charity stripe
- Lexie Lodermeier pulled down a team-high five rebounds to go with six points, a block and a steal
STATS OF THE GAME...
- MSU Moorhead contained the Peacocks to 18.4 percent shooting from the floor while converting 50.0 percent of its shots on the night. The Wolves also proved why they are one of the best rebounding units in the nation with a 47-29 advantage on the glass
UP NEXT... The Peacocks will suit up at home for the first time in 2020. Upper Iowa will host Augustana University on Jan. 10 and Wayne State College on Jan. 11 for a pair of NSIC South Division rematches.
