STORM LAKE, Iowa (Nov. 14, 2023) - The Buena Vista women's basketball team tipped-off its 2023-24 campaign on Tuesday night inside of Siebens Fieldhouse, hosting the University of Northwestern (Minn.). The Eagles (1-1) outscored BVU by 14 in the second quarter en route to an 82-59 victory.

Junior McKenna Cone led the Beavers with 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting. Senior Addison Weber scored nine points, grabbed four rebounds and chalked up two steals, while sophomore Danika Demers registered eight points, four rebounds and a team-high five assists. 

It was a bit of a slow start by both teams, combining for only 10 made field goals in the opening quarter as the Eagles led 16-14 after one. Northwestern then made 5-of-6 three-point shots in the second quarter, while BVU made just five total field goals, and the Eagles broke open a 40-24 halftime advantage.

The Beavers tried to claw themselves back into the game in the third quarter by making 4-of-10 shots from long distance, but the hot shooting by the Eagles continued as they drained 5-of-9 attempts from behind the arc and shot 56.3 percent from the field in the period to maintain a 63-42 cushion entering the final stanza.

It was back-and-forth throughout much of the final quarter, and BVU was unable to go on much of a run to cut into the 21-point deficit.

A big difference in the game was the three-point shooting. Northwestern made 13-of-23 attempts while BVU was 6-of-26. Both teams made 11 free-throws while the Eagles made only eight more field goals.

Lexi Hagen was 3-of-6 from distance for the Eagles and finished with a game-high 20 points to lead the way.

Buena Vista (0-1) travels to Crown College on Friday, Nov. 17 for a 5 p.m. tip-off.