The shooting touch simply wasn't there for University of Minnesota Duluth Friday afternoon, and the Bulldogs were unable to convert from the field consistently in a 58-47 NCAA Central Region quarterfinal loss to Metro State College in Wayne, Neb. UMD, which shot 26 percent from the field in its last appearance at Rice Auditorium, shot a nearly identical 25.7 percent from the floor for the game.

The Bulldogs took an early lead when sophomore forward and reigning Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Freshman of the Year Katrina Newman knocked down a 15-foot jumper on UMD's first trip up the floor, but went 5:50 before converting another field goal in digging an early hole. Metro State answered that opening basket with a 14-2 scoring run, forcing Bulldog head coach Annette Wiles to call a timeout 9:51 into the first half to try and calm things down.

Despite struggling to generate offense (UMD went 2-of-17 to start the game) and trailing by as many as 10, the Bulldogs remained within striking distance by continually forcing turnovers (15 in the first half) on defense. Following a steal by Newman and subsequent timeout, junior guard Courtney Doucette connected from behind the line to pull UMD within two. Metro State tacked on a free throw in the waning seconds of the half to take a 19-16 lead into intermission.

The second half saw the Bulldogs come out and shoot slightly more efficiently, and UMD cut the gap to one when freshman guard Jessica Newman hit a three-pointer to make it 25-24 Metro State. But the Roadrunners quickly stretched their lead back to seven after the trey by Newman, and continued to hold the Bulldogs at arm's length for the remainder of the game. Metro State took much better care of the ball in the second half, pulling away down the stretch with UMD fouling to try and stage a late comeback.

Metro State (26-3) shot 37.8 percent from the field and made good on 15-of-24 attempts from the free throw line. UMD (19-9) got 41 of its 47 points from the starting five, including 14-point and 12-point efforts from Katrina Newman and Doucette, respectively. Shelly Stemper finished with eight points and five rebounds in her final collegiate appearance.