#7 Dakota Wesleyan Bounces #10 Rust In Opening Round Of NAIA Tournament

DUBUQUE, Iowa – The #10 seed Rust College women's basketball program will go down in the record books despite the disappointing end to the campaign as they finish with the most wins in school history, ending the season with a 28-4 (87.5%) overall record after falling to the #7 seed Dakota Wesleyan in the NAIA Opening Round, 86-75 on Friday night.

The Basics: 

• Score
• • #7 Dakota Wesleyan – 86
  • #10 Rust – 75

• Records
• • #10 Rust (28-4, 17-1 Gulf Coast)
  • #7 Dakota Wesleyan (21-10, 14-8 Great Plains)

• Location
• • Dubuque, Iowa – Robert & Ruth Kehl Center

• Series History
• • Dakota Wesleyan Leads 1-0 (0%)

• Winning Streak
• • Dakota Wesleyan (W1) | Rust's Last Win: N/A

Rust Top Performers: 

• Karyn Ford was the best player on the floor for Coach Jackson, leading the Blue and White with 17 points on 8-of-11 (72.7%) with four boards, two steals, and a block in 22 minutes off the bench.

• GCAC Newcomer of the Year Diamond Sweats put ten points on the board along with a game-high five assists in addition to a pair of pickpockets on defense, three boards, and a swat.

• Her teammate on the All-GCAC First Team, Niya McGuire also dropped ten on the Tigers, fronting the club regarding the rebounding category at five and blocked shot tally with two on top of shooting 62.5% (5-for-8) from the floor.

• Blesseth Dillingham, Dekeriya Patterson, and Amelya Hatch each contributed eight points while combining for five dimes.

Notes

• This is the first time that the ladies did not win a game after earning a spot in the NAIA Tournament, having its first berth wiped out due to the pandemic and winning both of its matchups in 2022 and 2023 as #9 seeds before falling to the top team in the quadrant.

Next:

• N/A

#RustLaFamilia | #TheDynasty | #PawsUp | #GCACRising