A 19-4 Buena Vista run that spanned the end of the first half and the early part of the second half gave the Buena Vista women’s basketball team too much momentum, and the Beavers slipped past Central 69-63 in last night’s Iowa Conference opener.

Heard live on kniakrls.com and on 92.1 fm KRLS, the game saw the Dutch start strong, leading by as many as nine points in the first half, before the Beavers mounted a comeback and took the lead for good.

Central had no answer for Buena Vista’s players in the paint, as Jessica Christensen led four BV players in double figures with 16 points. She also pulled down 8 rebounds, which tied her with teammate Amanda Roder and Central’s Nicole Strasko for the game high.

Behind an 8-of-9 performance at the free throw line, Alyssa Schwartz led the Dutch in points with 14, while AJ Baker added 12.

The loss drops the Central women to 3-2 overall and 0-1 in the Iowa Conference. They’ll continue league play on Saturday with a road contest in Mount Vernon against Cornell.