St. Cloud, MN – Behind a 23-point performance from Peighton Nelson, the Parkside Rangers defeated the St. Cloud State Huskies on the road. The Rangers improved their perfect road record to 4-0 with another nail-biting win, defeating the Huskies 69-63 and outscoring them 38-32 in the second half.

Inside the box score:

• Nelson led the way with a season-high 23 points. She added 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals to her stat line.
• Sheridan Flauger joined Nelson in double figures with 12 points.
• The Petersen sisters dominated the glass, with both recording a team-high nine rebounds.

How it happened:
The game began with Sheridan Flauger jumpstarting the Rangers' offense by blowing past a defender for an easy basket. However, the Rangers went cold, missing their next four field goals. The high-powered Huskies offense quickly found its rhythm, jumping out to an 8-2 lead after a 5-0 run in the early stages of the first quarter. The Huskies extended their advantage to eight points by the first media timeout. Fresh off a career night, Chloe Van Zeeland connected on Parkside's first triple, inching the Rangers closer. Jaelyn Derlein followed with a three of her own. Despite these efforts, the Huskies held a 24-17 advantage after shooting 58% from the field in the first quarter.

Both teams began the second quarter in a scoring slump. In fact, through the first four minutes, Alli Hampel was the only player to score. Parkside's defensive intensity reached an all-time high, keeping the Huskies off the board until the 3:51 mark. The Rangers also struggled offensively, but a Cassidy Arni three-pointer pulled them within two points. A few minutes later, Chloe Van Zeeland scooped in the go-ahead layup, giving Parkside its first lead at 25-24. The offenses for both teams picked up late in the quarter, with Lillie Petersen capping the half with a bucket to knot the score at 31 heading into the break.

In the third quarter, Peighton Nelson came alive offensively. She opened the scoring with a tough drive to the hoop, then dished an assist to Lillie Petersen, who knocked down a triple. After sinking two free throws, Nelson helped Parkside open up a 38-33 lead. She tallied nine points in the third quarter alone. Although the Huskies battled to stay within reach, the Rangers held a 47-43 lead heading into the final quarter.

Nelson's dominance continued in the fourth, starting with two quick baskets to extend Parkside's lead to 51-46. As both teams fought down the stretch, Alli Hampel hit a clutch triple to push the Rangers' advantage to six points. With two minutes remaining, Nelson scored again, putting Parkside up 61-55. Despite Nelson's brilliance, the Huskies refused to back down, cutting the deficit to two points with 12 seconds to play. Sheridan Flauger sealed the game by hitting a series of clutch free throws, and Nelson put the nail in the coffin with a final free throw to cap her 23-point performance. Nelson went 11-14 from the line, including 17 second-half points. The Rangers improved to 4-2 with a perfect 4-0 record in the road. 

Next:
The Rangers face their first conference games of the season with the GLIAC schedule set to begin Thursday. Parkside will take on Michigan Tech on Thursday night, followed by RV Northern Michigan on Saturday. For coverage of these critical conference matchups, visit ParksideRangers.com/coverage.