The Swedes struggled to control the hot Mid-America Christian offense and found themselves down by 17 at the half. The Evangels never looked back as they out rebounded Bethany 50-27, handing the Swedes a 75-54 loss.

Junior Claire Cole had a team-high 15 points, followed by sophomore Rhys Pihl with 12. Freshman Emily Dwerlkotte added eight points while senior Jade Pihl tacked on seven. Junior Cathy Wade grabbed five rebounds as R. Pihl and Cole each had four. R. Pihl had three assists and three steals while Dwerlkotte snuck five steals.

Bethany began their conference schedule by hosting Friends University Thursday evening.

The evening showcased a tight first half as Friends went into halftime with a minimal one-point lead over the Swedes. Turnovers proved to plague the Swedes as they had 18 compared to the Falcon 11 as Friends grabbed a 72-66 win over Bethany.

"We played well in the first half, and even most of the second half," said head coach Jim Campion. "We did well until we reached, I think we were tied 54-54, and then we didn't take care of the ball and missed shots. Friends got a run and we tried to catch up and just couldn't catch up."

Sophomore Rhys Pihl had a game-high 23 points as senior Amber Dunham scored 13 and junior Claire Cole added ten. R. Pihl and junior Cathy Wade each grabbed seven rebounds in the contest. Cole and R. Pihl each had three assists, followed by senior Jade Pihl, sophomore Stephanie Schell, and freshmen Emily Dwerlkotte and Nicole Felker, who all tacked on two assists. Cole and R. Pihl headed the defensive efforts on the evening with two steals apiece.

The Swedes ended the week with a Saturday night contest at Sterling College.

Bethany stayed in stride with Sterling in the first half, and walked into the locker room at halftime down by a mere three points. However, the Warriors found their rhythm in the second half, outscoring Bethany by 12 and handing them an 82-67 loss.

"Again, we played real well the first half," Campion said. "We kind of turned the ball over the last two minutes of the first half, but still kept it a three-point game. We played really well in the second half, but I think give credit to Sterling as they upped the pressure and forced us to turn the ball over, which resulted in easier baskets for them."

R. Pihl scored a team-high 21 points while Wade added 19. Cole tacked on 15 points in the contest. R. Pihl, Wade, and Cole all grabbed six rebounds on the night. J. Pihl tallied three assists as R. Pihl and Felker added two each. R. Pihl headed the Swede defense with three steals.

"I am pleased with the effort," said Campion, "but we have got to stay away from curves in the game where we don't take care of the ball and give up easy scores."

The squad is now 0-2 in the KCAC, good for seventh place, and 1-8 overall. They hosted Central Christian College Monday, December 7 at 6 p.m. The Swedes head to Bethel College on Thursday, December 10 before hosting McPherson College on Saturday, December 10. Tip offs are scheduled for 6 p.m. and 5 p.m., respectively.