RAPID CITY, S.D. – The South Dakota Mines women's basketball team returned home Friday night at the King Center looking to get back on the winning side of the ledger but ran up against a solid Regis University team.
Regis, 14-4 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, pulled away in the second half to post a 71-53 win. The loss dropped the Hardrockers to 5-12 in the RMAC.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Hardrockers got off to a nice start with five points from senior
Madelyn Heiser and a quick 7-2 lead. But the Rangers responded with 11 unanswered points before sophomore
Lauren Herman hit a 3-pointer with 3:26 remaining in the first period.
Regis closed the first with the final eight points, including two straight 3-pointers, for a 21-10 advantage. South Dakota Mines was 4-of-14 from the field in the first period after making its first two shots, while Regis finished 9-of-16 from the field.
Again, the Hardrockers started well in the second with five points from Herman and a 9-6 beginning, cutting the lead to 27-19. The Rangers dominated the final couple of minutes of the first half with a 6-0 run before two layups by freshman
Morning Grace Spotted Bear closed the gap. Regis was still in control at halftime, 39-27.
With a pair of 3-pointers, Herman paced the Hardrockers in the first half with eight points, followed by Heiser with seven points and Spotted Bear with six points.
Regis maintained its momentum in the third quarter and outscored the Hardrockers 20-10 to take a 59-37 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Senior
Piper Bauer scored four early points in the fourth quarter and seven straight points by Heiser cut the lead to 61-48 with 6:05 to play. Regis responded with three straight buckets to end the Hardrocker run.
South Dakota Mines got a couple of late baskets from Bauer and outscored the Rangers 16-12 in the quarter, but Regis had more than enough for the 71-53 victory.
GAME NOTES
Madelyn Heiser led the Hardrockers with 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field and 2-of-3 3-pointers. She also finished with five rebounds and one steal. Despite an off night from deep,
Piper Bauer had a strong all-around game as she finished with 12 points – all on two-point field goals. Bauer also had seven rebounds and six assists.
Lauren Herman finished with nine points and four rebounds, while sophomore
Savea Mansfield scored eight points.
Morning Grace Spotted Bear added six points and grabbed seven rebounds. As a team, the Hardrockers shot 39 percent from the field (23-of-59) and hit 4-of-16 3-pointers and 3-of-4 free throws. Regis shot 48 percent from the field and hit 5-of-15 3-pointers and 6-of-11 free throws. Both teams grabbed 31 rebounds.
UP NEXT
The Hardrockers return to action Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. when they host the University of Colorado Colorado Springs at the King Center.
Fans can find the latest on South Dakota Mines women's basketball all year long on X and Instagram (@hardrockerwbb), while also following on Facebook at South Dakota Mines Women's Basketball. The latest on South Dakota Mines athletics can be found by following us on X at @GoHardrockers, hardrockerathletics on Instagram and Hardrocker Athletics on Facebook.
ABOUT SOUTH DAKOTA MINES
South Dakota Mines is a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) and NCAA Division II offering 13 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletic programs. The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference is a premier NCAA Division II conference with 15 members, as well as four associate members, located in the states of California, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah.
