AZUSA, Calif. – A seven-minute scoring drought proved to be costly for the RiverHawks in a 74-62 loss to Biola on Friday afternoon at the Azusa Pacific Thanksgiving Classic.
Cenia Hayes paced the RiverHawks by one with 13 points;
Cailyn Long had 12 with half of those coming in the final ten minutes.
Julia Hill had her best afternoon of the season in front of the home crowd. The California native scored ten points off the NSU bench with a pair of steals.
Friday's game sends the RiverHawks to 1-4 this season, while Biola goes to 2-3.
Northeastern State led for most of the first quarter but shot 30.6-percent (19-62); in the second half, they went 9-for-33 on the floor. Biola shot a steady hand in all four periods and went 44.4-percent (24-54) on their side of the court.
Trailing as many as 15 points in the third quarter, the RiverHawks closed the gap down to five (45-40) thanks to nine unanswered points. However, the Eagles' Tatum Brimley ended the NSU run with back-to-back treys in the final 50 seconds of the period.
TURNING POINT
Trailing by 32-30 out of the intermission, the RiverHawks went scoreless for six minutes from the start of the third period; Biola went on a 13-point run to put away the RiverHawks during that span.
IN THE BOX
- Joi Bertrand had a season high nine rebounds and a pair of blocks to send her year total to 13.
- Bailee Eldred was held to a season low four points but grabbed eight rebounds.
- The RiverHawks matched their season high with 40 rebounds but where edged on the glass by one.
COMING UP
Northeastern State will face tournament hosts Azusa Pacific on Saturday at 5 p.m.
