MOORHEAD, MINN. - The University of Minnesota Crookston women's basketball team overcame a 17-point deficit in the second quarter to defeat Minnesota State University Moorhead 64-63 at Nemzek Fieldhouse Saturday, December 21. Minnesota Crookston outscored the Dragons 37-23 in the second half to pick up the victory.
Minnesota Crookston improved to 5-7 (3-3 NSIC) with Saturday's win, as they split the final weekend of the 2024 slate. The Dragons fell to 6-6 (4-2 NSIC) with the loss. Minnesota Crookston picked up their second win in the last three games in Moorhead against the Dragons.
The Golden Eagles were guided by Emma Miller (Jr., G, Albertville, Minn.) with 31 points on 13-of-24 from the field. Miller scored 25 points in the second half. Miller has 1,269 career points. She now ranks sixth all-time, surpassing Kari Score. Nicole Hernandez (R-Sr., F/C, Oak Creek, Wis.) finished with a near triple-double of 10 points, 10 rebounds, and eight blocked shots. Her eight blocked shots tied the school record previously set by Jessica Forsline in 2000. She has 127 blocked shots in her career, moving past Jessica Forsline for second all-time in a career. She needs 32 blocks to surpass Isieoma Odor for the career record. Hernandez is among the national leaders in blocked shots.
Halle Winjum (Fr., G, Crookston, Minn.) ended a strong weekend in her first career starts, adding eight points on 3-of-5 from the field. Willow Thiel (Fr., F, Perham, Minn.) came off the bench for eight points, and five boards.
The Golden Eagles shot 24-of-52 from the field for 46.2 percent. Minnesota Crookston went 10-of-23 for 43.5 percent. The Golden Eagles were 6-of-9 for 66.7 percent from the stripe. Minnesota Crookston was outrebounded 38-30. They had 12 assists, to 15 turnovers.
MSU Moorhead looked to 15 points off the bench from Tori Ratz, on 5-of-7 from beyond the arc. Terryn Johnson had a double-double of 10 points, and 12 boards. Abby Berge notched 13 points.
The Dragons shot 24-of-63 for 38.1 percent, while MSU Moorhead was 9-of-23 for 39.1 percent from distance. They were 6-of-8 for 75.0 percent from the foul line.
Minnesota Crookston took a 3-2 lead early as Winjum drained a trey from the wing. Winjum made it two three-pointers in the first three minutes to widen the gap to 7-4. Minnesota Crookston went ahead 14-9 with just over four minutes left in the first when Hernandez drained a triple. The Dragons tied the game 14-14 on a Ayelishka Teko-Folly bucket. Minnesota Crookston took the lead back and extended it to four with a Thiel lay-in to make it 18-14. The Dragons pulled within 20-19 on a Berge three-pointer with seven seconds remaining in the quarter.
The Dragons took a 21-20 lead early in the second stanza with a Berge basket. MSU Moorhead widened the gap to 26-20 with a Tori Ratz triple with 7:06 remaining in the second. The Dragons extended their lead to 34-20 following treys from Ratz and Adie Wagner. Minnesota Crookston trimmed the deficit to 36-23 with a Hernandez three-pointer. The Dragons pushed their lead to 40-23 with a Wagner lay-in. Miller found Olivia Walsh (So., F, Austin, Minn.) in transition to cut the deficit to 40-27 going into the locker room.
MSU Moorhead extended their lead to 42-27 with a Berge lay-in. Minnesota Crookston took the deficit down to 42-31 with a Miller triple. The Dragons responded and extended the lead out to 46-31 on a Johnson basket. The Golden Eagles countered with a 7-0 run as Miller converted an old-fashioned three-point play to pull the U of M Crookston within 46-38. The Golden Eagles extended the run to 9-0 as Hope Dudycha (R-So., G, Austin, Minn.) found Thiel for a transition basket to cut the deficit to six points. MSU Moorhead finally halted Minnesota Crookston's 11-0 run with a Johnson jumper to extend their lead to 48-42. The Dragons went over five minutes without scoring. Minnesota Crookston took the MSU Moorhead lead down to three with a Hernandez trey. MSU Moorhead went into the quarter break with the 50-47 lead.
The Golden Eagles tied the game 51-51 on a Jenkins three with 8:30 left in the tilt. The Dragons took the lead back 54-51 on a Safranski triple, but Miller had the answer to knot the game 54-54 with 6:30 remaining. Minnesota Crookston took the 57-54 lead with a Miller triple. Miller followed it up with another three-pointer to widen the gap to 60-54 with 4:38 left in the game. A Miller floater widened the gap to 62-56 with just over two minutes left in the tilt. Miller then stole it and put it in for two to push the advantage to 64-56. The Dragons were able to take the deficit down to 64-62 with a Safranski trey with 44 seconds left. Karlee Fisher hit 1-of-2 from the line with 1.8 seconds remaining as Minnesota Crookston picked up the 64-63 victory.
Minnesota Crookston returns from break to face Southwest Minnesota State University Friday, January 3 at 5:30 p.m., in Crookston.
