DECORAH, Iowa  – The Luther College women's basketball team is back to its winning ways. After a disappointing loss at home on Wednesday, the Norse course corrected in Saturday's American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) game against Buena Vista. Luther dominated en route to a 73-58 win over the visiting Beavers, improving to 12-8 overall and 7-4 in A-R-C play.
 
BUILD THE DAM
Both the Norse and Beavers were hot offensively to open the game, as the two teams scored a combined 27  points in the opening five minutes. For every shot Luther made, Buena Vista had an answer, as the visitors bullied their way to a one point deficit at 14-13. In the closing four minutes, though, the Norse proved to be too much, as they scored 10 unanswered points in the final four minutes to make it 24-13 Luther at the end of the first quarter. 

The Norse nearly doubled their point total in the second quarter, as their offense and defense were firing on all cylinders. Luther plugged the Beaver offense, holding Buena Vista to just nine points in the second quarter, while scoring 16 points of its own. Megan Miller (Urbandale, Iowa / Des Moines Christian) led the offense charge for the Norse in the opening half, as she scored a team-leading 10 points in the opening 20 minutes of play. A slew of other student-athletes also put together impressive numbers, as four of Luther's five starters were all shooting over .500 in the first and second quarters. 
 
Unlike the first two quarters, the Norse got off to a slow start, as they ran into foul trouble early in the third. Jordan Rubie (Winona, Minn. / Cotter) was called for her third foul not five minutes into the third quarter, while Emilee Scofield-Burcham (Colfax, Wis. / Colfax) was called for her fourth just a few minutes later, forcing head coach Amanda Bailey to play the majority of the third quarter without them. Luther also committed several turnovers in the third quarter, but not through bad passes or lost balls. The Norse were traveling during their offensive possessions, and the Beavers were able to take advantage, whittling the lead to 52-42 by the end of the third quarter. 
 
In the end, it was no harm, no foul for Luther, as the home team cruised to a 73-58 victory. Still, things looked dicey to start the fourth and final quarter, as Buena Vista cut the lead to 52-45 on its first offensive possession. The Norse responded with a layup-and-one, as Rubie stopped the bleeding with a three-point play to regain a 10 point advantage for Luther. Back-to-back threes from MIller ensured the Beavers wouldn't come close to the Norse lead, as she sufficiently shut down any hope of a Buena Vista comeback. Still, Luther fans didn't truly breathe easy until the closing minutes, when Chelin Isaacson (Superior, Colo. / Monarch) and Rubie went 4-4 from the charity stripe, securing the 73-58 victory for the Norse. 
 
TOP NORSE
 

• Megan Miller (Urbandale, Iowa / Des Moines Christian) led the team in scoring, as she recorded a season-high 20 points on 7-12 shooting and was a perfect 3-3 from beyond the arc. She also led the way with four steals and committed just two turnovers. 
• Kailey Jones  (Avoca, Iowa / AHSTW) recorded yet another double-double, scoring 16 points with a team-leading 10 rebounds. Jordan Rubie (Winona, Minn./ Cotter) closed the game with 12 points, while Lizzie Kauls (North Oaks, Minn. / Mounds View) led the team with four assists.

 
UP NEXT
The Norse will hit the road for the first time in 10 days, as they travel to Waverly, Iowa for their next A-R-C contest. Tip off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at Wartburg College.