Box Score

ST. PAUL -- The Northwestern College women's basketball team continued its winning ways from a week ago, defeating Martin Luther College 69-59 on Friday evening. The Eagles had three players score in double figures while establishing a presence under the hoop that guided the Purple and Gold to a 38-26 advantage in the paint and a 41-36 rebounding advantage.

Despite a slow start that saw the Knights lead 8-0 out of the gate, Northwestern responded with 15 straight points to take a 20-11 lead.  Katie DeWitt (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial) (Lino Lakes, Minn./Centennial), Kristin Sczublewski (Pierz, Minn./Pierz) (Pierz, Minn./Pierz) and Allison Johnson (Plymouth, Minn./Heritage Christian) (Plymouth, Minn./Heritage Christian) were instrumental in the turnaround, each scoring two or more times throughout the run. Made baskets by Martin Luther's Amanda Selle and Emily Boldt brought the visitors on the scoreboard back within two points before Becca Scheil (Blaine, Minn./Meadow Creek) drained a jumper in the paint to give NWC a 25-21 edge at halftime.

Northwestern's lead ballooned to double figures and then some midway through the second half, as the Eagles went on a 14-0 run to lead 61-40 with 6:55 to play. Martin Luther battled back to come within eight points, but the home team prevailed to earn its eighth victory of the year.

As a team, the Eagles shot 28-for-61 (46 percent) with 21 assists. NWC's defense held strong, which was evidenced by a 34 percent shooting mark by Martin Luther. Northwestern, who has battled injuries in recent weeks, received a nice contribution from its four bench players, who together out-scored the Knights' bench 17-3.

DeWitt posted yet another 20-plus point game with 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting. The current UMAC Player of the Week and D3Hoops.com Team of the Week member also added 10 rebounds to record a double-double. Johnson joined her fellow senior in double figures with 12 points on a 5-7 night, while Sczublewski finished with 10 points.

Erica Babinec had nearly half of her team's points as the Martin Luther junior had 28 on 11 made baskets and a 5-5 performance at the free throw line. Sarah Free chipped in 16 points for the Knights (4-11, 2-4 UMAC).

Northwestern, now 8-9 overall and 4-2 in UMAC play after the victory, will shift its attention to Saturday afternoon, when the Eagles will host Bethany Lutheran College, who shares the same conference record. Tip-off in the Ericksen Center is scheduled for 3 p.m.