MARSHALL, Minn. – The Concordia-St. Paul women's basketball team (9-11, 5-9 NSIC) four victories in five games with a road win at Southwest Minnesota State (3-17, 1-13 NSIC) by a score of 78-70 on Saturday night.
 
The Golden Bears had an efficient evening from the floor as they knocked down 46.0% (29-63) of their shots, 44.4% (8-18) from three and a perfect 100.0% (12-12) from the free throw line on the night. CSP held the Mustangs to 39.7% (25-63) in the win.
 
CSP also held a 34-28 edge in points in the paint as well as a 13-5 advantage on fast break points and a 16-14 advantage in turnovers forced.
 
Concordia's offense featured a balanced attack as all five starters broke the double digit mark in scoring. Lauren Shifflett led the way with 22 points as she hit 8-14 from the floor and 6-10 from deep. It marked the second time in four games that Shifflett hit six threes in a game. She also added four assists and three steals.
 
Anna Schmitt put up 13 points, five boards and four assists while Mishayla Jones added 12 points and four assists. Caitlyn Russell also chipped in 12 points and five rebounds.
 
Kyrah Fredenburg, the NSIC leader in rebounds, notched another double-double as she grabbed a team-best 12 rebounds to go along with 10 points and five steals in a full line for CSP.
 
Annessa Rosch and Hope Bonlander did the heavy lifting in the scoring department for the Mustangs as Rosch finished with 17 points and Bonlander finished with 16.
 
Things got off to a slow start for the Golden Bears in the opening quarter as the Mustangs scored the first four points of the game and remained out front for the entire period. Concordia managed to pull within one on a few occasions in the first but weren't able to tie it up or take the lead as SMSU saw their lead grow as large as seven points at 17-10 before CSP cut it to 17-15 heading into the second.
 
The momentum shifted in favor of Concordia in the second quarter as the Golden Bears evened the score early in the second before taking their first lead of the game at 25-21 following a 6-0 midway through the period. Southwest Minnesota State tied it back up at 29-29 a few minutes later, but CSP rallied to score eight of the final 10 before the break to take a 37-31 lead into the locker room at the half.
 
Concordia picked up where they left off in the third quarter as they quickly extended their lead to the highest of the night at 43-33 as they looked to run away with it. That wouldn't be the case, however, as the Mustangs exploded for an extended 23-8 run over a seven and a half minute stretch that put them back out front at 56-51. The Golden Bears rebounded in short order as they countered with a 7-1 run to close out the third with a 58-57 lead.
 
The Golden Bears wasted little time putting the game out of reach in the fourth quarter as a Shifflett three in the opening seconds gave CSP a multi-possession lead for good. The lead hit eight at 65-57 and 10 at 69-59 as SMSU wasn't able to pull closer than four the rest of the way. The Mustangs were back within four at 74-70 in the final minute but four Concordia free throws down the stretch pushed it to a final score of 78-70.
 
CSP returns home next weekend as MSU Moorhead and Northern State come to Gangelhoff Center on Friday and Saturday.