Playing without their leading scorer, Northern Colorado had enough offense, led by freshman forward Lauren Oosdyke’s 24 points and 6 rebounds, to defeat the NAU women’s basketball team 66-56 tonight at the Skydome.

Although the Bears controlled most of the first half, the Lumberjacks played the Bears tough through the game’s first fifteen minutes, as they were only down five at 27-22 with 4:37 remaining in the first half. But the Bears would go on a 12-2 run to close out the half to take a 15 point lead into halftime.

Down by as many as 17 in the second half, the Jacks would go on a surge getting within eight midway through the period courtesy of two three-pointers by freshman guard Tyler Stephens-Jenkins. But the Bears would once again respond bringing their lead back to 13 with five minutes to go to thwart any NAU comeback.

Freshman guard Amy Patton led the Jacks with 19 points while junior forward Tiffany Amos contributed nine points and five rebounds off the bench. But their performances were not enough as the Jacks once again struggled at the free-throw line, shooting 9-20 for the game.

In addition to the loss, the Jacks also lost junior guard Vickie Toney to an ankle injury midway through the first half. The extent of the injury is unknown. Toney was leading the Jacks with 4.8 assists entering tonight’s contest.

The Jacks return to the hardwood on Feb. 11 for a matchup against Weber State at the Skydome. The Jacks defeated the Wildcats in their earlier meeting on Jan. 9 in Ogden, Utah 63-62 on a buzzer-beater shot by Patton.