DECORAH, Iowa (Feb. 14, 2026) - The Buena Vista women's basketball team officially punched its ticket into the American Rivers Conference Tournament on Saturday after completing the season sweep of Luther College with a 78-64 road victory. It marks the first season sweep of the Norse since the 2013-14 campaign.

It was a tightly contested game in the first half with both teams going back-and-forth and not being able to grow much of a lead. The Norse led 16-13 after the first quarter, and the game was tied 35-35 at the half. The Beavers heated up starting in the second quarter by making 10-of-17 from the field but Luther was able to keep things close by making three long range buckets. 

The Beavers again made 10-of-17 from the field in the third quarter and made three from downtown while holding Luther to only five made field goals. The team took control and took a 58-48 lead to the fourth. BVU kept the stellar shooting going in the final frame by shooting over 66 percent and maintaining the double-digit cushion. Sophomore Tyme Boettcher nailed a three-pointer that gave the team a 67-54 lead with under six minutes to play. Luther (12-11,  8-6 A-R-C) hung around and cut the margin down to eight on multiple occasions, but the Beavers closed by scoring the final six points to win by 14.

Sophomore Bradi Krager helped lead the charge with a team-high 22 points and eight rebounds. Freshman Adeeya Yanga continues her torrid stretch with 19 points, eight rebounds, two blocks and a pair of steals. Junior Mary Walker chipped in with 15 points and three steals while Boettcher finished with 12 points and hauled in nine boards. Senior Danika Demers dished out a team-leading four assists to go along with her six points and six rebounds.

Buena Vista was 31-of-56 from the floor in the game (55.4 percent) and knocked down 7-of-22 from behind the arc. The team made seven of its nine free-throws in the game during the fourth quarter and finished the day making 9-of-12 overall.

The win pushes the Beavers (14-9, 8-6 A-R-C) back into a three-way tie for third place in the A-R-C standings and gives the team its first non-COVID trip to the league tournament since the 2017-18 season. All nine teams advanced during the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season. The team has now captured its highest-single season overall win total since also winning 14 games in 2016-17. The team's eight league wins is the most since going 8-8 in 2017-18. BVU closes the season with a road game on Wednesday at Nebraska Wesleyan (1-13 A-R-C) and at home for Senior Day on Saturday, Feb. 21 versus Loras College (5-10 A-R-C). The team will be going for the season sweep in both games which would give it the highest conference win total since it went 10-6 back in 2009-10.,