WINONA, Minn. – Despite 15 points, five steals and four assists from Jessie Geer, the University of Sioux Falls Women's Basketball Team (13-7, 8-6 NSIC) dropped a 64-50 decision to Winona State (10-8, 8-6 NSIC) on Saturday in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play.

With the loss, USF dropped to 13-7 overall and 8-6 in the NSIC play as the Cougars sit tied for third with Winona State at 8-6. USF lost to WSU for the second straight time and now trail the series with WSU, 7-5, as members in the NSIC. The Cougars also dropped to 3-4 in league road games but stand 5-4 on the road overall.

Against WSU, the Cougars opened up a 19-9 lead in the second quarter but ran into shooting woes as the Warriors took control with a 25-2 run to close that quarter. At the half, WSU had a 34-21 lead. USF outscored WSU, 16-12 in the third quarter but lost the fourth quarter, 18-13, as WSU picked up the win.

Geer had her sixth double-digit scoring game by hitting 6-of-12 field goals, including 2-of-6 from three-point range. She also had three rebounds, four assists and tied a career-high with five steals. Sophomore guard Lauren Sanders came off the bench to score nine points by hitting 3-of-4 from three-point range. Junior guard Kaely Hummel had six points and now has 996 career points. Sophomore forward Anna Goodhope pulled down a team-high eight rebounds with three assists and four points.

After hitting 5-of-8 shots to open the game, USF ran into shooting problems. The Cougars, which had a 7:21 scoreless run from middle of the second to early in the third quarter, finished 21-of-57 for 36.8 percent in the game. USF was just 5-of-20 from three-point range for 25 percent.

A couple of keys to the game was USF's foul problems and WSU's ability to convert foul shots. WSU, which was 22-of-54 for 40.7 percent from the field, had a 15-to-3 advantage in made free throws. Those charity tosses resulted from 22 USF fouls. They also had a 38-26 margin on the boards.

WSU was led in scoring by Kayla Schaefer with 14 points while Allie Pickrain had 13, including three triples. Gabi Doud had a game-high 12 rebounds and added nine points.

Game Breakdown ---
After the Warriors opened the scoring on a jumper by Pickrain, the Cougars had an 11-2 run to take the lead. First, Krystal Carlson, who finished with six points, knocked in a pair of jumpers and then Geer followed with a three-pointer for a 7-2 USF lead at the 5:52 mark. After jumpers by Kiara James and Geer, the Cougars led, 11-4. Sanders, who had a pair of first half threes, connected from three-point distance as the Cougars took a 14-9 advantage after the first quarter.

Things changed dramatically for USF in the second quarter. After Sanders hit a three and Geer converted a lay-up, the Cougars led, 19-9 with 8:38 to play. Then the Warriors took control of the game as the Cougars went cold and didn't score over the final 5:46 of the second quarter. With Pickrain scoring 10 points in the half, the Warriors had a 25-2 run and outscored USF 25-7 in the quarter to build a 34-21 halftime lead. USF hit just 3-of-15 field goals in the second quarter and were just 9-of-30 on field goals over the first two quarters for 30 percent. USF also made just 3-of-10 from three-point range and did not attempt a free throws while committing 12 fouls. Geer had seven points to lead USF.

WSU made 10-of-24 field goals for 41.7 percent in the first half and caught fire in the second quarter by converting 8-of-14 field goals for 57.1 percent. They also had an 11-0 advantage at the foul line and an 18-14 advantage on the boards.

In the third quarter, USF, which hit 6-of-14 shots for 42.9 percent, had a 16-12 edge as Geer scored nine points to lead the way for USF. Hummel's basket at 6:51 drew USF within 36-27. But WSU answered as with back-to-back threes from Pickrain and Julia Silloway for a 44-28 lead at the 5:06 mark. After a three-pointer from Geer and a basket by James, USF cut the lead to 46-37 at the quarter break.

Early in the fourth quarter, USF again trimmed the deficit and pulled within 46-39 when Mariah Szymanski hit a jumper at the 8:47 mark.  But after a Gabi Doud basket, WSU retook a 52-41 lead. The Cougars made one more run and cut the margin to eight (58-50) when Geer converted a basket . However, WSU closed on a 6-0 run to claim the victory over USF.

Next for USF will be a pair of home games with Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston next weekend (Feb. 1-2) at the Stewart Center.