Ross leads BU to 73-50 win over V-Hawks in NSAA Quarters

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BELLEVUE, Neb. -- Returning from an ankle injury, senior Faith Ross scored 17 points to lead the No. 3-seeded Bellevue University women's basketball team to a 73-50 victory over No. 6 Viterbo University Tuesday night in the quarterfinals of the North Star Athletic Association Tournament being played at the Gordon Lozier Athletic Center. 

The win moves the Bruins to 17-11 on the season. BU will face the No. 2-seed Mayville State University at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 25, in the semifinals at the Watertown Civic Arena in Watertown, S.D.

Viterbo ends its season with a 7-20 record. 

Ross went 6-of-10 from the field and was 5-of-8 from behind the arc while adding four rebounds. 

Asha Scott finished with 16 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Delaney VanBlaricon came off the bench to score 14 points on 4-of-10 shooting from long range. Ashtyn Arnold was the fourth Bruin in double figures, finishing with 11 points along with eight rebounds. 

Natalia Leguizamon paced the V-Hawks with 15 points, three rebounds, and a pair of steals. Sophie Leinfelder added 10 points and four boards. 

The Bruins raced out to a 13-0 lead, holding the V-Hawks scoreless for the first eight minutes of the contest. A layup by Scott gave BU a 15-3 lead after the opening 10 minutes of play. VU hit just 1-of-14 shots in the opening quarter. 

The V-Hawks scored the first eight points of the second quarter to slice the margin to four points at 15-11, capped by a 3-pointer from Julia Salmen with 6:23 remaining before the intermission. 

After a 3-pointer by Miranda Hennings gave BU a 10-point lead, the V-Hawks scored the final four points of the half as the Bruins took a 29-23 lead into the halftime break. 

Scott, Ross, and VanBlaricon scored six points apiece, and Arnold added five to lead the BU offense in the first half.  

Leguizamon paced the V-Hawks in the opening half with 11 points, two rebounds, and a pair of steals. 

The Bruins used a 17-0 run early in the second half to expand the margin to 23 points at 51-38 with 4:04 remaining in the third. 

After VU got as close as 20 points following a pair of free throws by Leguizamon, BU ended the third frame on a 4-0 run to take a 59-35 advantage going into the final stanza. 

The Bruins outscored VU 30-12 in the third, paced by 11 points from Ross on 4-of-5 shooting, including 3-of-3 from long range. 

A 7-0 V-Hawk run, including four-straight free throws from Nicole Johnson, pulled VU to within 18 points at 64-46 with 4:45 remaining in the contest. 

That was as close as VU would get as the Bruins cruised to the 73-50 victory.