PELLA — The Central College women's basketball team took down the Coe College Kohawks on Wednesday with a final score of 65-54. It was an impressive bounce back win against the second ranked team in the A-R-C for the Dutch, who were coming off a loss to Wartburg.

Central, who trailed 32-28 at halftime, were dominant on the defensive end in the second half to guide them to victory. The third quarter especially, where Central only allowed nine points to their own 16, is where they started to take control of the game. The Dutch then put the nail in the coffin in the fourth quarter, outscoring Coe 21-13. This is only Coe's second conference loss of the season (19-5 overall), showing what Central is capable of!

Emily Naughton (guard, junior, Indianola) led the scoring for the Dutch with 18 points. She was also a force to be reckoned with on the defensive side of the ball, recording a game-high 5 steals. Maddie Backer (guard, freshman, New Ulm, Minn.) added another 13 points to the Dutch's total while also recording a team-high 8 rebounds. CeCe Moore (forward, junior, Waterloo, West HS) anchored the overwhelming Central defense, recording a game-high three blocks.

The Dutch will look to carry this momentum into the regular season finale, where they will host Luther College on Saturday, February 21! Tip-off is at 2 p.m.