INDIANOLA — The Central College women's basketball team forced a tie in the fourth quarter but could not overtake Simpson College in a 73-65 Iowa Conference defeat Wednesday night.

Trailing by eight heading into the final period the Dutch utilized an 8-0 run to tie the game at 54 with just under eight minutes to play but Simpson (6-10 overall, 3-4 conference) rallied to finish the game on a 19-11 run.

"We had a great road battle with Simpson tonight," said coach Chelsea Petersen. "We handled runs and tied the game and unfortunately came up short."

Central (8-8 overall, 1-6 conference) was led by sophomore forward Claire Marburger (Perry) with 17 points and five rebounds. Marburger did most of her damage from the charity stripe, connecting on 11-of-12 attempts from the line. Junior guard Emily Dine (Oldsmar Fla., East Lake HS) added 14 points and four rebounds, junior guard Alison Malaby (Mechanicsville, North Cedar HS) added 10 points, five rebounds and three assists and sophomore guard Kaitlyn Johnson (Stockport, Van Buren HS) had nine points, off 3-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc.

"Our offense was much improved from previous games," said Petersen. "Emily Dine did a great job of finding the line in the first half and Claire Marburger was aggressive in the second half."

Simpson controlled the glass collecting 37 rebounds compared to the Dutch 29 and outshot Central 47.2 percent to 35.1. The two teams combined to go 34-of-37 from the free throw line in the contest.

The Dutch return to action Monday night for a rescheduled matchup with Nebraska Wesleyan at P.H. Kuyper Gymnasium with the women beginning at 5 p.m. The January 16 contest was postponed due to weather conditions. Nebraska Wesleyan (8-7 overall, 2-5 conference) is coming off a home 68-55 loss to Loras Wednesday night. The Prairie Wolves host No.8-ranked Wartburg College on Saturday.

"We look forward to preparing for Nebraska Wesleyan on Monday, finishing out the first run through conference and continuing to improve," said Petersen.