BISMARCK, N.D. – Bismarck State women's basketball was at home on Friday for their Frontier Conference opener against No. 17 Rocky Mountain (Mont.). The game at the Armory was the first home NAIA contest for the program, along with their first conference games as members of the Frontier.
 
The Mystics faced a tall task in front of them as they matched up with the 2-0 Battlin' Bears, who were fresh off their win over No. 14 Carroll (Mont.) last Friday, while BSC was gearing up for its third game in four days.  
 
Things looked less than promising early as Rocky Mountain attacked their way to an early 11-2 lead just three minutes into the opening period. As was the case in their first three games, the Mystics' offense would need to rely on hitting shots from deep to keep them in the contest. And it paid its dividends as they knocked down five to bring them to within four by the end of quarter one. 

Down 19-23, the Mystics unleashed their best offensive period of the season in the second as they went 8-of-15 from beyond the arc to score 31 and take the 50-46 heading into halftime.

The Battlin' Bears weren't going down without a fight. They held BSC to 4-of-15 from three-point range in the third quarter and outscored them 19-16 to make it a one-point game entering the final period.

Rocky quickly took the lead back in the fourth thanks to a three-pointer from Paige Wasson, who would finish with 33 points on 13-of-18 from the field and 7-of-9 from deep. Piper Harris responded 10 seconds later with a three of her own, and then followed it with another 40 seconds later to extend the newly regained lead.

The Mystics caught fire from deep once again in the fourth, as they nailed six consecutive to take control of the game and reach their largest lead of the night at 11 points near the five-minute mark.

The Battlin' Bears clawed their way back to within four, closing in on 30 seconds remaining, but Kali Dauenhauer iced the game with two free throws to give the underdog Mystics a 93-88 victory and send the home crowd into a frenzy.

"I'm proud of how poised we stayed when things didn't start our way," Head Coach Jason Harris said. "We've talked a lot about trusting our shooters, trusting our pace, and trusting our depth. Once we settled in, you could feel the confidence grow. That second quarter was the team basketball I know we can play."

And team basketball it was. Five Mystics tallied double-digits in the upset victory: Kennedy Stormer (17), Natalie DeCoteau (16), Aleah McPherson (14), Alionna Lawrence (13), and Piper Harris (11).

BSC was an impressive 23-of-51 (45.1%) from beyond the arc and Rocky was an equally impressive 13-of-21 (61.9%). The Mystics showed depth as they finished with a stark advantage in bench points at 28-9.

BSC improves their record on the young season to 1-3, and a perfect 1-0 in conference play, while Rocky drops to 2-1, and 1-1.

The Mystics will look to continue their momentum against another ranked opponent at they welcome No. 14 Carroll (Mont.) to the Armory on Saturday, Nov. 22 at 5 p.m. The Fighting Saints lost to Rocky on Nov. 14, 56-67, but prevailed against Dickinson State 66-40, on Friday night. 

Check out the women's schedule for information on how to follow and attend the next home game.