LAKELAND, Fla. -- UND received career highs from Katie Richards and Casey Carroll as the No. 1-ranked Sioux held on to beat No. 24 Florida Southern College 86-74 on Thursday night.
Richards scored 28 points while Carroll added 14, 10 coming in the first half.
UND broke a 37-37 halftime tie with a 12-4 run to start the second half. Mandy Arndtson, who added 23 points, and Richards keyed the spurt. Richard scored seven of the points, Arndtson five.
The Sioux built 18-point leads twice in the second half before Florida Southern's rallied behind its pressure defense. Antonia Newman's 3-pointer with 1:30 to play cut UND's lead to 79-71.
But Arndtson, Carroll and Jaime Pudenz combined to hit seven free throws in the final 1:13 to seal the win for the 2-0 Sioux. Florida Southern, which had won 19 straight at home, dropped to 2-1.
"It was a great game for our players," Sioux coach Gene Roebuck said. "They had to challenge themselves to win a tough game on the road. This was a big game. I didn't know how we'd respond. For the most part, our players kept their composure and made baskets when we needed them the most."
Florida Southern's pressure did cause UND problems. The Sioux were called for 25 turnovers but played a solid final two minutes to protect their lead.
"Their press definitely affected us," Roebuck said. "We haven't worked a lot on press breaking but as the year goes on we'll be able to handle that stuff."
UND went on a 12-2 run to open the game and held a 17-6 advantage before Florida Southern staged its first rally. The Lady Moccasins, led by Tasha Smith's 26 points, grabbed leads of 25-24 and 29-27 but had to settle for the 37-37 halftime tie.
The win was a difficult one for the Sioux because their depth is under some strain. The Sioux played a uptempo, pressure team without guard Tonia Jones, who is still out with a hamstring injury. And 6-foot-2 Kami Winger, a big part of UND's past two national Division II championships, turned an ankle in practice Tuesday night.
Winger didn't start and the Sioux didn't want to play her if at all possible. However, Sioux center Jenny Crouse was in foul trouble much of the game, forcing the Sioux to use Winger, who played 23 minutes and scored six points. Crouse ended with four points before fouling out with 3:55 to play.
"Kami did a great job," Roebuck said. "She was doubtful and we were hoping we wouldn't have to use her."
The Sioux, who made 54 percent of their field-goal attempts, play at St. Leo College tonight to complete their Florida road trip. St. Leo is 0-2.