BEMIDJI, Minn. - The Concordia-St. Paul women's basketball team (16-6, 12-5 NSIC) used a huge second half burst to defeat Bemidji State (5-15, 3-13 NSIC) 83-52 Friday night at BSU Gymnasium. With the win and Augustana's loss to Minnesota Duluth, CSP now has sole possession of first place in the NSIC South.

It was an efficient offense that led the Golden Bears to their 16th victory of the season, as CSP shot 54.2% from the field while holding Bemidji State to 37.0% shooting. The Golden Bears also hit 52.9% of their three's to 37.5% from downtown for the Beavers, and sank 76.9% of their free throws compared to BSU's 60%.

The Beavers were able to cut CSP's lead to two early in the second half (38-36), but it was all Golden Bears from there. Concordia outscored the Beavers 45-16 from that point on, cruising to the victory by putting up their fourth highest point total of the year.

Anna Schmitt led the offensive charge for the Golden Bears, as the senior poured in 22 points on 8-14 shooting from the floor, including 3-3 from three. Schmitt also dished out four assists and was a +25 on the court in just 23 minutes of play.

Three other Golden Bears also posted double-digit scoring totals, as Lindsay, Dorr, Lexi Lee, and Riley Wheatcraft each added 11 points. Dorr also secured her tenth double-double of the season with 13 rebounds and provided rim protection with three blocks. Lee made an efficient 5-8 from the floor with two steals while Wheatcraft matched Schmitt for the team lead with three triples.

CSP led in nearly every statistical category at the final buzzer, including a large margin in rebounds (37-25) and points in the paint (38-22). The Golden Bears also capitalized off of 14 Beaver turnovers, scoring 15 points off of BSU miscues. Bemidji State scored just three points off of seven CSP turnovers, Concordia's lowest mark of the season.

The Golden Bears got out to a quick lead on a Schmitt three-point shot, which was soon followed by a Sidney Wentland layup to give the Golden Bears a 5-0 lead right off of the tip. Concordia and Bemidji State would trade baskets for most of the rest first quarter, as CSP was unable to increase their lead to more than seven points in the opening 10 minutes. The Beavers were able to cut the deficit to three points at the end of the quarter, with the scoreboard reading 16-13 in favor of the Golden Bears.

Bemidji State would continue to gain momentum in the opening of the second frame, as the Beavers capped off a 7-0 run with a layup by Trinity Myer to take a 17-16 lead with 8:34 to go in the half. Concordia answered back with 14-2 run to take a 30-19 lead, and went into the half with a with a 38-29 edge. CSP shot 59.3% from the field in the first half as they ran a very efficient offense in the first 20 minutes.

The Golden Bears started the second half slow, missing a few layups and allowing the Beavers to start the third quarter on a 7-0 run, closing the gap to just two points (38-36). After a couple of subs, the Golden Bears would quickly regain a more comfortable lead, going on an 11-0 run. One of those subs was Riley Wheatcraft, who sank two three-pointers in the run for the Golden Bears and scored all 11 of her points in the quarter.

CSP would continue their momentum into the final frame, as they scored the first 10 points of the fourth quarter to create an insurmountable 68-45 lead. Concordia would continue to outshoot the Beavers down the stretch, including a 7-0 run by Lee alone. The Golden Bears were able to get their bench involved in the second half, as they had seven players score six or more points and posted 25 bench points as a team.

Concordia moves to 31-11 all-time against the Beavers, and has now won 28 of the last 30 matchups. Concordia is now 12-3 playing at Bemidji State in their matchups in the NSIC.

The Golden Bears will travel to Minnesota Crookston's Lysaker Gymnasium tomorrow, where they will face the Golden Eagles (10-13, 5-12 NSIC) at 3:30. UMC has lost their last five contests this season, but they have beaten the Golden Bears in five of the last seven matchups between the two teams. You can watch the game live at www.cspbears.com/watch.