NAPERVILLE, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings women's basketball team will hit the road for the first time since their season opener to face off against the North Central Cardinals on Saturday, December 7.
The Vikings sit at 3-4 on the season and return to action after hosting the Elmhurst Bluejays in their conference opener on Wednesday, which resulted in an 80-72 victory for Augie. The Vikings scored the first four points of the game while holding the Bluejays scoreless through three minutes. Both teams drew even three times, but a pair of baskets by Paige Melton and Emma Berg snatched back the four-point lead. With three seconds left in the first quarter, Melton notched a layup to move the advantage to six and make it a 22-16 score. In the second, the Vikings outscored the Bluejays 22-16 for the second straight period, with nine of Augie's points coming from the free-throw line. Augie kicked off the quarter with a six-point run with Tia Lewis increasing the difference to 12. The Vikings got up as many as 14 from Elmhurst on four different occasions and Dolly Smith closed out the half with two free throws to bring the score to 44-32 at the break.
Augie's advantage grew to 19 early in the second half after the Vikings collected six points in the first two minutes and held Elmhurst to zero. Kadence Tatum secured the game's largest lead at 19 after a three-pointer around the seven-minute mark, but the Bluejays' pressure allowed them to make a big run to tie the game up entering the fourth. Elmhurst grabbed its first lead of the game with the first points of the fourth quarter and the two teams alternated baskets through the first two-plus minutes. After earning the lead back on a Lewis layup, the Vikings went up by six a few possessions later on a pair of free throws from Smith. A three-point play from the Bluejays shrunk the gap back down to just two points, but Augie answered with two straight baskets by Melton. Tatum closed out the game with the final four points for the team to complete the 80-72 win.
Four different Vikings collected double-digit points in the win. Melton was the top scorer with a career-high 31 points to go with eight rebounds, while Tatum followed with 14. Lewis added 11 and Berg had 10.
The Cardinals enter the contest with a 4-3 record and return to action after falling by a score of 66-62 against No. 22 Chicago on Wednesday. North Central shot 39.7 percent with 36 points in the paint, while their opponent shot 41.7 percent. Biz Daly led the Cardinals with 24 points, five rebounds, and two steals. Josylin Simmons-Doxie followed with 19 points and five assists. North Central has a 2-1 home record this season, with their last being the loss against Chicago. Saturday will be the Cardinal's first CCIW matchup after finishing last season with a 12-14 overall record and 7-9 in conference play.
Augie holds a 49-38 all-time series record over North Central. The Vikings won the most recent matchup in Naperville by a score of 66-63 last season in the first round of the CCIW tournament.
Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m.
