ST. PAUL, Minn. - A 54-20 opening half where Concordia-St. Paul (6-0, 1-0 NSIC) shot 53.8% from the field led to a 78-48 final score over Winona State (4-2, 0-1 NSIC) on Tuesday evening. Senior center Lindsey Becher scored 18 points with six rebounds and three blocks in the NSIC opening victory.

This start marks the first time a CSP women's team has won six games to begin a season since 2009-10, passing 2021's 5-0 start. The Golden Bears started the year 10-0 in 2009-10. On Tuesday, Concordia earned the No. 21 ranking in the WBCA coaches' poll. 

Junior guard Lydia Haack recorded her sixth career and third double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 assists. Her 10 assists tied a career-high that she set earlier this season against Maryville (Mo.) on Nov. 16. 

The Golden Bears finished the game shooting 29-63 (46%) and 10-27 (37%) on 3-pointers. This marked CSP's second-highest percentages in both marks this season, with the highest performance against Central Missouri on Nov. 9. The 30-point margin of victory is Concordia's best this season. 

Concordia-St. Paul made their first three shots from the field to lead 7-2 early. After the Warriors hit a bucket to cut the lead to 7-4, CSP went on an 18-0 run in the opening quarter. The Golden Bears led 32-10 after the first period shooting 12-19 (63.2%) from the field. Sophomore guard Ashley Schuelke scored all nine of her total points in the quarter going 3-3 from the field. 

Both teams traded baskets to start the second quarter before CSP went on another run outscoring Winona State 10-0 over a 3:53 period in the second quarter. Concordia went into halftime with a 54-20 lead after shooting 9-20 (45%) in the second period. 

The contest was more even in the second half with Winona State slightly edging CSP 28-24. Some Golden Bear bench players saw extended minutes with sophomore Kierstin Kriewaldt scoring the first two points of her career. 

Senior forward Megan Gamble was the leading rebounder for the Golden Bears with 10. She also added eight points shooting 3-3 from the field. Junior guard Leah Dengerud scored 10 points with five rebounds and an assist. Mikayla Kanenwisher added 10 points shooting 4-4 from the field and 2-2 from behind the arc. 

Julia Bengtson and Emma Mommsen added four points and four rebounds each. Lauren Wilson hit a corner 3-pointer for her lone points of the contest. The sophomore forward also added three blocked shots to her totals. 

The Golden Bears shot 10-13 from the free-throw line and limited their fouls, allowing the Warriors to go 2-4 from the charity stripe. CSP outrebounded WSU 47-34 and won the assist battle 18-8. Both teams had 12 turnovers. 

Concordia outscored Winona 32-16 in the paint, 13-5 on fast breaks, 28-20 on bench points and 14-8 off of turnovers. CSP's largest lead was 37 points in the fourth quarter. The Golden Bears never trailed in the game. 

Winona State shot 19-63 (30.2%) from the field and 8-33 (24.2%) from behind the arc. Hailey Markworth led The Warriors in scoring with 17 points and eight rebounds. 

Concordia-St. Paul returns to action after the Thanksgiving holiday against Michigan Tech (2-4). The Huskies are 1-3 against NSIC competition already this season. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. in Houghton, Michigan on Saturday, Nov. 30.