WOLVES TAKE SOLE POSSESSION OF SECOND PLACE WITH WIN OVER SOUTHWEST

Feb. 1, 2002

Pick Poison Purath -- Senior Jodi Purath, shown above against SSU Friday night, helped NSU notch its 13th straight home victory with a solid all-around game. Purath ended with nine points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals.

With a big game and a little help, Northern State moved up and out of a three-way tie for second place in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.

The Wolves defeated Southwest State 69-65 Friday night in the Barnett Center. After the game, the team found out it got a little help with Minnesota-Crookston defeating host Minnesota-Duluth in overtime. That means the Wolves (14-6, 9-3 NSIC) are now in sole possession of second place, trailing only Concordia-St. Paul (17-4, 9-2 NSIC). CSP was off Friday and plays Winona State Saturday night.

Northern had a big first half, out-rebounding the Mustangs by 11 while shooting 57 percent from the field. Without some timely SSU's 3-pointers, the damage could have been worse for the Mustangs (13-7, 8-4 NSIC), who trailed 41-30 at the half.

SSU chipped back in the second half and and actually took the lead twice, but NSU was able stave off the charge, thanks in large part to junior forward Shana Theobald.

The Brookings native tied a career high with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting (including 2-of-2 from 3-point range) and scored seven of those point in the final six minutes of the game. Senior guard Holly Schaunaman (Leola) added 11 points to go with three steals, while freshman post Natlaie Hopkins (St. Louis Park, Minn.) rounded out NSU's double-digit scorers with 10 points to go with five rebounds. Senior forward Jodi Purath (Red Lake Falls, Minn.) ended with nine points, five boards, three assists and three steals. SSU was led by Mary Roddel's 15 points.

NSU's win was the team's eight straight this season at home. Dating back to last season, the Wolves have won 13 straight within the friendly confines of the Barnett Center.