VALPARAISO, Ind. -- Valparaiso used a hot shooting night, connecting on 14-of-25 three-point attempts to defeat Bradley, 82-73 in non-conference women's basketball action Tuesday at the Athletics Recreation Center in Valparaiso, Ind. The Braves fell to 3-4 overall on the season, while Valparaiso improved to 3-2 with the victory.

Bradley trailed 37-34 at halftime, but the Crusaders opened the second half with an 11-5 spurt to build their lead to nine points at 48-39 with 16:18 to play. Senior Amy Peters scored six points to help key an 11-2 Braves run that pulled Bradley even at 53-53 with nearly 13 minutes remaining.

The Braves took their first lead since the opening minutes of the first half on an Erika Nelson three-pointer with 9:18 to play that gave Bradley a 60-58 advantage.

Valparaiso responded with back-to-back three-pointers to spark a 14-3 run that put the Crusaders back in front 73-63 with 4:52 to go. Valpo hit five of their final six three-point attempts after the Braves took the two-point lead and led by as many as 14 points (79-65). Bradley cut the deficit to 10 points on a Devyn Flanagan three-pointer with 2:19 to play, but the Braves managed just three points in the final minutes as Valparaiso picked up its first victory in the series with an 82-73 victory.

Four Bradley players scored in double figures, paced by Flanagan's 18 points. Flanagan also added four assists and one steal in 33 minutes of play. Nelson connected on a career-best five three-pointers on 10 attempts and finished with a season-high 17 points. Peters also finished with 17 points off bench, hitting 6-of-10 shots from the field, while sophomore Kelly Krumwiede had her third double-double in the last four outings, posting 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Valparaiso shot 56 percent from three-point range, including 69 percent in the second half (9-for-13). Betsy Rietema led all players with 20 points to pace the Crusaders. Agnieszka Kulaga added 18 points and tied for game-high honors with five assists off the bench, while Carrie Myers (17 points) and Sarah Ott (12 points) were also in double figures. Myers connected on 5-of-8 three-point attempts, hitting four of five three-pointers in the second half.

The Braves had one of their best shooting nights of the season, shooting 43.3 percent from the field. Bradley also connected on 8-of-17 three-point attempts (47.1 percent), but couldn't overcome Valparaiso's long range accuracy and the Crusaders also committed just 12 turnovers.

Bradley returns to action Sunday when the Braves play host to Loyola-Chicago at 2:05 p.m. at Robertson Memorial Field House.