SANTA CRUZ, Calif. – The University of Northwestern women's basketball team rounded out action at the UC Santa Cruz Classic when they took on the tournament host in a Saturday night tipoff. The Eagles battled it out, defeating the Slugs 66-64 in final scoring.
 
Northwestern improves to 5-7 on the year as UC Santa Cruz falls to 6-6 this season. Miranda Crenshaw (Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) and Kelsea Lund (Madison, Minn./La qui Parle Valley) were named to the All-Tournament team for their dynamic play in the pair of weekend games.
 
The Eagles orchestrated a strong start, taking a five point lead sparked by a three-pointer from Jordan Sauve (Blaine, Minn./Blaine) to round out first quarter play. The Slugs picked up the pace in the second, outscoring Northwestern 23-12 to hold a five point lead at the half.
 
The Eagles shut down the Santa Cruz lead with lock-down defense, holding the opponent to just six points in the third quarter. Another three-pointer from Sauve gave the Eagles a four-point advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
 
With the battle in full swing, UNW went up by as much as nine points midway through the fourth before the Slugs put together a last chance comeback. Santa Cruz took a one point lead with under three minutes remaining, but Northwestern's resiliency followed suit. Senior Amy Berglund (Springfield, Va./West Springfield) showcased her veteran play – scoring on back-to-back layups assisted by Miranda Crenshaw (Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) to give the Eagles a two-point lead with under a minute remaining. Northwestern held the Slugs scoreless in the final 55 seconds to secure the tournament win.
 
A trio of Eagles recorded double-digit scoring on the evening. Rio Landers (Grand Meadow, Minn./Grand Meadow) and Miranda Crenshaw (Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) both tallied 12 points in the contest. Crenshaw pulled down a team-best 10 rebounds. Amy Berglund (Springfield, Va./West Springfield) added 11 points of her own and tacked on four assists and four steals.
 
Brooklyn DeKam (Edgerton, Minn./Southwest MN Christian) and Kelsea Lund (Madison, Minn./La qui Parle Valley) each added nine points on the night.
 
Northwestern will return to action on Wednesday, January 2^nd when they travel to Ashland, Wis. to take on Northland College. Tipoff is slated for 5:30 p.m. against the Lumberjills.