Black Hills State women's basketball secured their third win of the season after a 61-50 victory over the Minot State Beavers on Thursday night. 
 
Megan Engesser played her shots from downtown against the Beavers, shooting 6-9 from the band as she topped the Yellow Jacket scoring with 18 points. Engesser shot 4-5 three's alone in the first quarter, with Niki Van Wyk connecting from beyond the arch to bring the Yellow Jacket clip to 83.3 percent in the first quarter.
 
The defense also held three steals and a blocked shot on the quarter, versus a Beaver block and one steal.
 
Kalla Bertram came off the bench and logged the only other Yellow Jacket double-digit point total with eleven. She shot a 50 clip from the field that included two long-range buckets.
 
Van Wyk and Ellie Moore each held six rebounds on the night, with Van Wyk splitting offensive and defensive while Moore grabbed five of her boards on defense. Moore made three of six total shots in her performance, with most of them scored from the paint.
 
Overall, the Yellow Jackets finished the game with 43.5 percent from the field which included 52.4 percent from three.
 
The Yellow Jackets turned up the heat quickly to open the game as they knocked down 61 percent of their field goals in the first quarter, which included four three-point shots made by Megan Engesser. Back-to-back three-point scores courtesy of Engesser and Van Wyk closed the first quarter with the Yellow Jackets up by 10.
 
After a made free throw from Haylee Weathersby, Danica Kocer and Kalla Bertram each turned in three-pieces to expand BHSU's lead to 33-17 at the 4:07 mark in the second. BHSU ended the half with a 12-point lead after Minot State capped off the half with a jumper to bring the score to 41-29.
 
Despite four made free throws from the Beavers, Van Wyk, Moore, and Engesser continued to maintain the lead for the Yellow Jackets. After an Engesser three at 5:33 to go, both teams went scoreless until an Alessia Capley layup gave BHSU a 51-35 lead. Heading down the line, both teams slowed down on shooting, with a Beaver block and steal ending the third quarter.
 
The Beavers began to charge back in the fourth off an 11-2 run, closing the gap to 57-50. Multiple missed shots and fouls from Minot State, however, gave BHSU four points from the line and ate up the remaining 92 seconds in the game, giving the Yellow Jackets their third win of the season to cap off a four-game home series.
 
Up Next
The ladies are out of town for their next pair of games as they close out the non-conference portion of the season. On Tuesday, Nov. 22 they head to Billings, Montana to take on the MSU-Billings Yellowjackets before heading to Rapid City for their final non-conference bout against South Dakota Mines.
 
RMAC play begins on Friday, Dec. 2 as the Yellow Jackets will face Regis under the lights of the Donald E. Young Center.