Box Score
ST. PAUL – The University of Northwestern women's basketball team kicked off the second round of its Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) schedule with a convincing 69-50 victory over North Central University on Tuesday night. The Eagles didn't have the best shooting performance of their season, but UNW held the Rams to just 17 baskets on 62 attempts while outrebounding the visitor on the scoreboard by a 56-43 difference.
Northwestern started off hot, nailing the first four baskets of the game to lead 8-0 after just two and a half minutes of action. The pace slowed down slightly shortly thereafter, allowing North Central to get on the board with a few buckets. UNW showcased some impressive inside-outside passing as the period reached its halfway point, as
Kim Campbell (Bloomington, Minn./Kennedy)'s made three-pointer followed a layup from
Jessica Fife (Maple Grove, Minn./Osseo) under the hoop. The Eagles closed the first 20 minutes of the game out with a 9-0 run to go into the locker room with a 35-16 lead.
The Northwestern lead continued to keep pace early on in the second period as another Campbell make from downtown pushed the Eagles buffer to 47-24. UNW's edge maxed out at 24 points numerous times before the Rams were able to keep the Eagles from getting too comfortable. What was once a 53-29 score in Northwestern's favor turned into a 13-point lead at 59-46 as Jorie Grenell and Jamie High made big baskets to keep their team within striking range. UNW made enough baskets down the stretch to keep the margin at double digits though as the Eagles earned their 14th win of the season in 69-50 fashion.
Chanel Madson (Westbrook, Minn./Westbrook-Walnut Grove) was one of two players to score double-digit points for UNW, scoring 21 points on 8-16 shooting.
Mollie Sir (Cresco, Iowa/Crestwood) added 12 points, while both Fife and
Courtney Cunard (Missouri Valley, Iowa/Missouri Valley) grabbed over 10 points, with Fife finishing the night at 15.
Emily Van Lith (Minot, N.D./Our Redeemers) added eight rebounds in 12 minutes of action off the bench.
Grenell scored 24 points for North Central, who fell to 7-10 overall (2-6 UMAC) after the loss. Julia Skeesick chipped in 12 points for the Rams.
Northwestern (14-5 overall, 6-2 UMAC) will continue its pursuit of a UMAC regular season crown this weekend when it heads back out on the road for games on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 7 and 8. The Eagles will face Crown College in St. Bonifacius, Minn. on Friday at 5:30 p.m. before heading even farther west to Morris, Minn. on Saturday for a showdown with the Cougars from Minnesota Morris at 3 p.m.
