The Eagles, who improved to 2-1 with the victory, led North Park by as many as 17 points early into the second half. But Vikings (1-4) rallied back to cut the Edgewood lead down to four at 63-59 on a three-point basket by Cory Wilks with 3:48 left to play.
North Park connected on a total of nine baskets from beyond the arc with six of those three pointers coming in the second half. However, anything the Vikings tried to do offensively was nullified by a strong shooting performance by the Eagles.
Edgewood College shot 58.3 percent (14-of-24) in the final period and 51.9 percent for the contest. Cooper shot 8-of-11 from the floor, including a perfect 4-of-4 from long distance. The team co-captain also had six assists and two of the team’s four steals.
For the third time in as many games, Averkamp led the Eagles with a game-high 12 rebounds in recording his first collegiate double-double. Senior Greg Blaska barely missed out on the same feat, as the 6-foot-8 center grabbed nine rebounds to go along with 14 points. Meanwhile, senior Dave Michalkiewicz dished out eight assists.
The Vikings were led by Je’shawn Stevenson and Wilks, who tallied 16 and 11 points, respectively. Brett Mathisen registered eight points and eight rebounds in the losing effort.