BEMIDJI, Minn. – Concordia-St. Paul (12-6, 8-5 NSIC) built a 29-point lead in the third quarter thanks to dominant scoring efforts from four of the five starters who combined to score 42 of the first 47 points en route to a 64-42 victory over Bemidji State (7-10, 4-9 NSIC) on Friday night at BSU Gymnasium.
 
Starters Leah Dengerud, Ashley Schuelke, Lydia Haack and Lauren Wilson each hit double-figures by the middle of the third quarter in the victory.

Dengerud had a strong shooting night, hitting 7-10 for 15 points, adding four rebounds and a steal. Schuelke and Haack each put up 11 points and Wilson had 10. Schuelke was 5-8 from the field, had four rebounds, a pair of blocks and a pair of assists. Wilson flirted with a double-double, finishing with eight rebounds while adding three blocks and two assists, and Haack had six rebounds and two steals.
 
The game was knotted at 14 early in the second quarter when the Golden Bears had their first scoring burst, an 11-0 run in just under two minutes of play, hitting 5-of-7 with the same starting four combination putting up all 11 points on 5-7 shooting while BSU managed to attempt just two shots during the same stretch.
 
Concordia went into the break leading 37-22 despite a slow start to the game, scoring just three points in the first four and a half minutes of play. Concordia also trailed late in the first quarter before a pair of free throws from Haack with six seconds left in the quarter put CSP ahead. Bemidji State wouldn't lead again the rest of the night, and their last forced tie was at 14-14 before CSP's 11-0 run broke the game open.
 
For the second-straight quarter, Concordia held Bemidji State to 11 points, but the Golden Bear offense picked up steam with a 25-point second quarter. Concordia's lead remained above double-figures the rest of the night, as CSP opened the second half with a blistering defensive effort that held BSU to just two points on its first possession of the half until its next basket with 4:34 to play in the third quarter.
 
During the extended stretch, CSP turned a 33-22 advantage into a commanding 52-25 lead, a 19-3 scoring run that was part of a larger 38-11 stretch of play that broke the 14-14 tie, the sixth tie of the night after a first quarter that also featured seven lead changes.
 
Concordia's defense stifled BSU to a 6-point third quarter and a 57-28 lead after three. In the third quarter, CSP held BSU to 2-13 shooting while the Golden Bears put up 20 points in the quarter on an 8-14 shooting effort.
 
When Schuelke drained a three-pointer to give CSP a 57-28 lead with 1:15 to play in the third quarter, the group of four had scored 47 of CSP's 57 points on the night. They would play sparingly the rest of the way as CSP's bench held at least a 20-point lead for the duration.
 
Ava Thompson led the bench effort with eight points including a pair of three-pointers, also securing four rebounds. Lauren Feddema had five points and a bench-high six rebounds, adding two steals and two blocks. Concordia's bench secured 18 of the team's 48 rebounds as Concordia out-rebounded Bemidji State 48-26 on the night.
 
On a cold evening outside, Concordia was able to offset its own cold outside shooting (23.1 percent, 6-26) by pounding the ball in the paint, making 19-36 inside the arc, holding a 30-18 scoring margin in the paint and 15-0 in second chance points.
 
Concordia collected 18 offensive rebounds compared to Bemidji State's 22 defensive rebounds.
 
The Golden Bears held Bemidji State to 27.1 percent (13-48) shooting and 15.8 percent (3-19) three-point shooting.
 
The Golden Bears improve to 37-15 all-time against Bemidji State including four-straight wins over the Beavers and are 14-4 in road games at BSU.
 
Concordia takes a four-game winning streak into tomorrow's 3:30 p.m. afternoon tipoff at Minnesota Duluth (14-3, 12-1 NSIC).
 
CSP is 25-27 all-time against the Bulldogs, sweeping UMD last year and winning three of the last four meetings. Concordia is 6-9 all-time at Romano Gymnasium in Duluth.