ST. PAUL, Minn. – The University of Northwestern women's basketball team welcomed Minnesota-Morris to the Ericksen Center for the Eagles final regular season UMAC tipoff in St. Paul. Northwestern, who trailed early on by eight points, put together consistent scoring and lock-down defense to upset Morris, 62-57 in final scoring.
 
Northwestern, who suffered an 11-3 deficit early on, orchestrated a late quarter comeback propelled by back to back three-pointers from Courtney Schmidt (Spring Valley, Minn./Kingsland) to take a 14-13 lead with two minutes to go in the first.
 
Northwestern extended its scoring spree with a layup from Miranda Crenshaw (Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) before the Cougars tied it up at 16-all to end the quarter.
 
The Eagles were back at it in the second, going up 25-20 after scoring on good looks in the paint from Landers and Crenshaw. Northwestern held the Cougars to just six points and 13% shooting from the field to take a 25-22 lead heading into the half.
 
Both teams' offensive consistency improved in the second half, led by Kelsea Lund (Madison, Minn./La qui Parle Valley) who drained 2 of 3 shots from beyond the arc. Despite Northwestern's effective scoring, the Eagles continued to be plagued by turnovers – committing five in the third quarter alone as Morris tied it up 46-46 at the buzzer.
 
With three minutes to go, Northwestern held a two point lead (58-56). Amy Berglund (Springfield, Va./West Springfield) connected on a jumper to stretch the lead to four. Cougar guard Elli Stevenson got to the line, cutting the UNW lead to three. With 30 seconds on the clock, Morris took their chance at two shots from beyond the arc before Miranda Crenshaw (Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) pulled down a big defensive rebound. The Cougars were forced to foul, sending Berglund to the line.
 
The senior knocked down both free throws with nine seconds on the clock, securing a 62-57 win for Northwestern on senior night.
 
Berglund led the scoring efforts, finishing with 16 on the night. She recorded five steals, increasing her career total to 609 (the second most in UNW history). Berglund and Brooklyn Plagge (Hampton, Iowa/Hampton-Dumont), who started at Center for the Eagles, were honored for their commitment to the UNW program during halftime of the men's game.
 
Rio Landers (Grand Meadow, Minn./Grand Meadow) added 14 points on the night and pulled down five rebounds. Miranda Crenshaw (Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) led the rebounding efforts for Northwestern with nine, while Kelsea Lund (Madison, Minn./La qui Parle Valley) dished out a game-high eight assists.
 
With the win, Northwestern improves to 12-12 overall, 9-6 in the UMAC. Morris falls to 15-9, 11-4 in conference play this season. Northwestern has secured a berth to the UMAC playoffs happening next week. Opponent and location will be determined following Saturday's games.
 
Northwestern will return to action on Saturday, Feb. 16 when they travel to New Ulm, Minn. to take on Martin Luther. The Knights enter the match-up with a 2-22 record and a 2-13 mark in the UMAC. Follow the game live via live stats and live video at https://mlcknights.com