IRVING, Texas -- The Lawrence University women's basketball team picked up its first victory of the season with a 70-65 nonconference win at the University of Dallas on Sunday.
Laura Aerts scored a game-high 20 points and had career highs with nine assists and seven steals to pace the Vikings (1-6). Katie Van Es added 14 points to match her season high.
Brielle Money and Cara Sczepanski scored 13 points apiece to lead Dallas (4-4).
The Vikings trailed early and were down 16-11 with 10:55 left in the first half. Aerts scored the game's next six points to give Lawrence its first lead of the game at 17-16.
Lawrence led 21-20 when the Vikings went on a 9-0 run, with five points from Katie Condon, to grab a 30-20 edge with 5:40 left in the half.
The Crusaders cut the lead to five on Joirdan Cole's basket with 10 seconds left, but Aerts hit a jumper at the buzzer to give Lawrence a 40-33 lead at the break.
Lawrence built its lead to as many as 15 points early in the second half, but the Crusaders battled back. Dallas chipped away at the lead until Sczepanski's jumper with 1:56 remaining cut the lead to 63-61.
Condon answered with a huge 3-pointer for the Vikings with 1:06 left to pump the lead back to 66-61. Bethany Roessler scored for Dallas to cut the margin back to 66-63, but America McClure's jumper with 23 seconds left put Lawrence up 68-63.
Roessler hit another jumper with nine seconds left to cut the lead to 68-65, and the Crusaders then fouled Aerts with four ticks remaining. She made both free throws to seal the victory.
Lawrence had not won since beating Knox College 63-52 back on Jan. 19, 2008, which was a stretch of 39 games.
Lawrence doesn't return to action until it hosts Mount Mary College on Jan. 5.