Guard Laura Porter recorded her second straight career best with a 26-point effort for the Dutch (3-7). Her 3-point bucket with 12 seconds left sliced Dordt’s lead to 72-71. Following a Central foul, Dordt’s Kristin De Ronde missed the second of two free throws with 8 seconds remaining but Porter’s potential game-tying shot at the buzzer missed the mark.
Porter, who also had four assists and two steals, racked up 25 points in Central’s previous outing, a 75-61 win over Ashford Dec. 15.
Guard Emily Conway drilled 5 of 6 3-point shots and scored 17 points while forward Erin Benson added 12. Forward Emily De Jong had a team-high eight rebounds and center Sara Iverson had seven boards but the Dutch were outrebounded 45-37.
Dordt (5-9) led most of the first half but a Porter jumper tied it at 36-36 heading into halftime. A 12-1 Dordt run put the Defenders up 55-42 with 12:09 remaining. Then a Porter layup helped Central claw back to within 55-53 with 8:55 left, only to have Dordt regain command 68-58 at the 4:40 mark before the Dutch made their final surge.
Dordt, which placed four players in double figures, shot 44.4 percent from the field to Central’s 36.4 percent. Kara Karlsgodt had 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Defenders.
Central resumes Iowa Conference play Wednesday, traveling to Cedar Falls for a women’s-men’s doubleheader with Wartburg College. The women’s contest tips off at 6 p.m. at West Gym on the University of Northern Iowa campus. The Dutch are 1-0 in league play and split a pair of games with the Knights last year. However Central hasn’t defeated Wartburg away from home since 1987. Wartburg, also 1-0 in the league, took a 6-3 overall record into a Sunday game at the Clarke Holiday Tournament in Dubuque.