Wildcats down Lady Pilots in key NAIA matchup

It was not the NAIA Division II game of the week as the fans had hoped it might be as both teams struggled from the field and the first ranked Indiana Wesleyan Wildcats overcame the Lady Pilots 66-46. The first half set the tone of the entire game which was filled with poor shooting and costly turnovers. The Pilots came out and quickly threatened Indiana Wesleyan with a 4-0 lead; however the Wildcats would respond with a 15-0 run and would not look back. Despite a rough half of shooting for Bethel they remarkably only found themselves down 29-17 at the break. In an attempt to recover from their first half woes, the Lady Pilots were unable to close the gap in the second half as the Wildcats would eventually look more like the number one team in NAIA Division II. The Lady Pilots were unable to force any pressure defensively and did not see many open looks all night. In addition, Indiana Wesleyan shut down the Lady Pilots transition offense. In the end, Ashley Lutz led the team with nine points and six rebounds. The team will look to improve upon their shooting slump as they host Huntington on Jan. 18. Tip off for that game is scheduled for 7 p.m.