Contact: Drew Sauer, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324

Box Score

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. (Jan. 28, 2021) – Despite leading for nearly the entire contest, the North Central College women's basketball team squandered a double-digit lead and went cold over the closing minutes to fall 69-63 to Augustana College on Thursday.
 
The Cardinals (0-3) led for just under 33 minutes of the contest, at one point holding a 34-21 lead at the 4:41 mark of the second quarter as Megan McClure, Haydn Braun and Allison Pearson all connected from three-point range during North Central's 13-2 run.
 
Holding a 13-point lead, the Cardinals suddenly went cold from the field and were held scoreless over a span of six minutes to end the first half and begin the third quarter allowing the Vikings (1-1) to trim the lead 34-33.
 
North Central slowly built the lead back to seven in the early stages of the fourth quarter as Pearson knocked down a jumper and Mitrese Smith scored down low to give the Cardinals a 57-50 lead with 8:17 to play.
 
Just as in the closing minutes of the first half however, North Central once again struggled to score on the offensive end to finish the game, as Augustana closed with a 19-6 run to steal away the series opener and leave the Cardinals still seeking its first win of the season.
 
Smith led North Central with a career-high 16 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field while grabbing seven rebounds.  Braun scored in double figures for the third-straight game to begin the season with 13 points, while Pearson added 10 points and eight rebounds.
 
An 18-point, 18-rebound double-double from Lauren Hall led the way for Augustana, while Hannah Simmer also finished with 18 points off the bench.
 
North Central seeks to avoid the series sweep on Saturday, Jan. 30, hosting Augustana at 2 p.m. inside Gregory Arena.  Links to live in-game coverage are available HERE.