Box Score ST. PAUL, Minn. - After a rocky start, the Bethany women's basketball team made it a game in the second half, but a late charge by Northwestern gave the Vikings a 68-52 setback.

When Bethany fell behind 32-7 with 2:40 left in the first half, few would have thought that the Vikings would make a tight game in the second half. The Vikings shots finally began to fall in the final minutes of the first half and they closed it out on an 11-2 run to pull within 34-18 at the break.

The shooting they found towards the end of the first carried over into the second. A pair of Jade Pelzl jumpers, including a 3, cut Northwestern's once 25 point down to four at 42-38 seven minutes into the half. The two teams exchanged baskets over the next three minutes, but the Eagles started to pull away following a 7-0 spurt that bumped their lead up to 11. Bethany would get no closer than seven the rest of the way.

Pelzl was Bethany's leading scorer with 13 points. Lacey Ellinghuysen pulled down 14 rebounds and added nine points. Kasslin Swenson and Angie Scheffler each had seven points and 11 rebounds.

Bethany (7-15, 4-7 in UMAC) concludes their 2-day twin cities trip Saturday at North Central at 3 p.m.