Juniors Ashley Smith and Nakia Carlisle's bench production was not enough to carry Concordia-St. Paul (18-7, 8-4 NSIC) to victory on the road against Southwest Minnesota State (18-8, 8-4 NSIC), as the Mustangs buried the Bears 82-69 Saturday night in Marshall, Minn.
Smith had 20 points and eight rebounds, while Carlisle added 16 points to spur a dry Concordia offense that shot just 26.7 percent in the first half before exploding for 48 second-half points. However. it wasn't enough to overcome Michelle Bruns's 26 points for the Mustangs.
Smith and senior Kayla Christensen each connected on four three-pointers, but the duo hit all eight Concordia three-pointers. K. Christensen ended up with 14 points on the night.
The loss for the Bears puts them in a three-way tie for second in the NSIC with SMSU and Northern State. MSU Moorhead picked up a big victory at home over Bemidji State to pull two games ahead of the threesome as they look to seal up the regular season title.