A quick start by Bethel University on Saturday afternoon was too much for the Buena Vista women's basketball team to overcome en route to a tough 74-52 road loss to the Royals.

Bethel made 11 of its first 15 shots from the field and built a 27-3 lead less than eight minutes into the contest.  BVU used a quick 9-0 spurt to try and claw its way back into the contest and trailed 36-23 at the half.

The Royals opened the second half with five straight points to build an 18-point advantage.  The margin hit 20 with 11 minutes to go, and BVU was not able to get much closer the rest of the way.

The Beavers struggled offensively, shooting just 25.4 percent overall from the field and made just 1-of-12 attempts from long range.

Shelby Wiederhoeft and Lacey Vokt each scored 11 points to help lead BVU offensively.  Vokt also hauled in eight rebounds with Wiederhoeft right behind with seven.

Bethel cooled off drastically after its hot start, going just 15-of-56 the rest of the way and made only 18-of-37 at the free-throw line.

Buena Vista will look to stop its two-game losing streak when the Beavers return home next Friday, November 28, to host Presentation College on day one of the two-day BVU Classic.  Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30pm.