FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- Junior forward Amber Hegge had 19 points and eight rebounds, but the South Dakota women's basketball team fell to Colorado State, 68-53, in a nonconference contest Monday afternoon in Fort Collins, Colo. The loss ended a three-game winning streak for South Dakota (8-6).

Hegge (Crofton, Neb.) hit 7-of-9 shots from the field and 5-of-8 from the free-throw line in the game. Junior guard Annie Roche (Vermillion, S.D.) added 10 points, while sophomore guard Alexis Yackley (Onida, S.D.) had nine points and a team-high three steals.

South Dakota struggled shooting from the three-point line and free-throw line on the night. The Coyotes hit just 5-of-28 three-pointers (17.9 percent), while hitting just 8-of-21 free throws (38.1 percent).

The Coyotes led 6-4 early after a layup by Hegge with 16:45 left in the half, but that was the only South Dakota lead of the contest. Colorado State scored seven straight points over the next two minutes to surge into an 11-6 lead.

South Dakota trailed 17-9 at one point but went on a 7-1 run, sparked by four points from Hegge and two from freshman forward Stacia Robertson (Grand Island, Neb.), to cut the lead to 18-16. The Rams ended the first half strong, however, going on a 12-4 run over the final 9:19 of the half to take a 30-20 lead into halftime.

Hegge (10 points) and Robertson (seven points) combined for 17 of South Dakota's 20 points in the opening frame. The Coyotes shot just 30.8 percent in the first half, including 0-of-10 (0 percent) from three-point range. Meanwhile, Colorado State's Sam Martin, who had a game-high 24 points, had a strong first half with 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting.

In the second half, South Dakota closed within 32-24 on a layup by Yackley just 1:32 into the second half, but the Rams hit back-to-back threes to push the lead back to 38-24.

The Coyotes came back with back-to-back threes of their own as Yackley and Roche drained threes - the first of the game for South Dakota - to cut the lead back to 38-30. South Dakota crept closer, cutting the lead to 41-35, with 12:53 left after a Hegge layup.

South Dakota hung around and was as close as 49-41 after a three-pointer by Yackley, but the Rams pushed the lead back to double digits at 53-41 after Martin drained a three-pointer with 6:47 left. The Coyotes were as close as 53-44 with 4:41 left but got no closer than 10 the rest of the way.

Robertson, making her first collegiate start, finished with seven points.

South Dakota returns to action on Tuesday, Dec. 28 at No. 23-ranked Wisconsin-Green Bay. Game time is 7 p.m. Central time in Green Bay, Wis. It is the first nationally-ranked team the Coyotes will play this season.