MARQUETTE, Mich. - The NMU women's basketball team closed out the weekend matchups with a meeting against the no. 11 ranked Ferris State Bulldogs, dropping the contest by a score of 79-67.

Down 11 points going into the half, the 'Cats turned in an impressive third quarter and clawed back to tie the game at 47 a-piece early in the fourth quarter, and the game was up for grabs. From then, the Bulldogs turned on a 32-17 run with 19 free throws to pull away.

The 'Cats had four athletes in double-digit figures in Sarah Newcomer (18), Makaylee Kuhn (14), Jacy Weisbrod (14), and Mackenzie Holzwart (11). Ana Rhude pulled down 11 boards to go with her six points, and CJ Romero dished out four assists. 

Mya Hiram put up 22 points to lead the Bulldogs, followed by Kenzie Bowers (17) and Chloe Idoni (12).

The 'Cats shot 23-62 (37.1%) from the field and 6-22 (27.3%) from beyond the arc, hitting 15-18 free throws and outrebounding the Bulldogs 42-29. The Bulldogs shot 24-56 (42.9%) from the field and 5-22 (22.7%) from deep, while converting on 26-28 (92.9) from the free throw line.

The Wildcats now drop to 10-5 overall and 4-2 in conference play, and the Bulldogs improve to 10-2 overall and 4-1 in conference play. 

How It Happened
1st Quarter
It was a slow start to open the quarter, as five minutes in it was 5-4 Ferris State with the 'Cats recording five turnovers and Ferris registering three turnovers and fouls. Both teams were much more clinical from that point onward, as the quarter ended 17-13 in favor of the Bulldogs.

Both teams had similar output after the first 10 minutes with a slight edge to the Bulldogs, as the 'Cats shot 5-14 from the field compared to 7-13 from the Bulldogs. The 'Cats outrebounded the 'Dogs 9-4, including four offensive boards to none.

2nd Quarter
Another slow start saw the 'Cats score four points off 2-6 shooting to the 'Dogs three points on 1-6 shooting, and the 'Cats trailed 20-17 halfway through the frame. 

Similarly to the first quarter, the scoring picked up after the first five minutes, with the Bulldogs going on a 16-5 run to close out the quarter with a 33-22 lead.

Sarah Newcomer led the 'Cats with nine points on 4-8 shooting with three rebounds, followed by Mackenzie Holzwart with seven points on 2-5 shooting and five rebounds. The 'Cats shot 9-27 from the field in the first half and 1-9 from deep in the first half, opposite the Bulldogs who shot 12-26 from the field and 3-13 from beyond the arc. The 'Cats outrebounded the 'Dogs 18-12, including five offensive boards to none.

3rd Quarter
This time it was the 'Cats turn to go on a scoring run, as the Wildcats opened the quarter on a 10-4 run to get within five points five minutes into the frame. The Bulldogs responded with six straight before the Wildcats went on another extensive run, this time 11-2, and cut the Bulldog lead to just two points after being down double digits to end the first half.

The 'Cats outscored the Bulldogs 21-12 in the third quarter, shooting 5-14 from the field, 1-6 from deep, and a perfect 10-10 from the free throw line as the Bulldogs were called for eight fouls in the quarter. The 'Cats once again dominated the glass, outrebounding the 'Dogs 13-8 with 12 second-chance points.

4th Quarter
A tightly contested opening quarter, back-and-forth scoring saw the 'Cats trail by just three points through five minutes. The Bulldogs fired off eight straight points to gain separation and start a 28-17 run, including 17 free throws, to close out the game.

Up Next
The Wildcats are on the road next weekend with a long road series, facing Purdue Northwest in Indiana on Thursday before traveling to Wisconsin to take on the Parkside Rangers on Saturday.