DUBUQUE, Iowa – The University of Dubuque women's basketball team led for over 34 minutes on Wednesday afternoon on their way to an 89-74 win over North Central (MN).

The Spartans fell in a quick 7-2 but quickly rallied to take the lead for good with three minutes to play in the first quarter after Lauren Griffith jumper. The UD defense shifted the momentum with their tenacity, forcing the Rams into eight first quarter turnovers, scoring 12 points off of turnovers to hold a seven-point lead after one quarter of action.

It took less than two minutes into the second quarter for the UD lead to balloon in double-digits, where it would hold steady as UD held North Central to only three points over the final 4:22 for an 11-3 run to end the half and a 50-35 lead at the break.

The Rams used four, third quarter three-pointers to trim the Spartan lead down to eight before the final quarter. North Central came out in the fourth and scored seven of the first nine points of the fourth quarter. However, the Spartans responded with a quick six points of their own and gradually pushed their lead back to 11 points with 4:09 remaining, and it would not get any closer for the remainder of the game.

UD dominated in most facets of the game on Wednesday afternoon, including in the post where UD outscored North Central 56-24 in the paint. The Spartans defense forced the Rams into 24 turnovers, which led to 25 points off turnovers and a majority of UD's 32 fast break points.

Tabria Thomas made it two games in a row over 20 points, filled up the stat line with 21 points, seven assists, five rebounds, four steals and one block. Senior Alli Bailey finished one rebound shy of a double-double as she totaled 16 points and nine rebounds, including a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line.   

The Spartan bench played a huge factor, outscoring the Rams bench by a staggering 26-2 margin, led by Vanessa Eniola and Laruen Griffith with 13 and 11 of the bench, respectively, to give the Spartans four players in double figures in the scoring column.

The Spartans head across town on Saturday to take on Loras College in a non-conference battle. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.