CROOKSTON, Minn. - Emma Miller (Sr., G, Albertville, Minn.) had a historic night as she set the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) women's basketball scoring record in a crucial 62-57 win over Minot State University Thursday, February 12 at Gary Senske Court at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Golden Eagles had three in double figures in a victory over the Beavers.
Minnesota Crookston improved to 8-17 (7-12 NSIC) with the win. The Golden Eagles have three-straight wins as they make a push for the NSIC Tournament. Minnesota Crookston is tied for fifth with Minot State in the NSIC North, and is tied for 10th with the University of Sioux Falls and Minot State entering Saturday's games. They are a game ahead of Augustana University, and a game behind Minnesota State University Moorhead. The Golden Eagles are 5-7 at home this season. They picked up their first home win over the Beavers since November 21, 2023. Minnesota Crookston is 13-12 all-time against Minot State, and is 3-2 in their last five tilts.
Miller led the way with 26 points on 11-of-25 from the field, and 4-of-10 from beyond the arc. She added nine rebounds, and three assists. Miller knocked off her most significant milestone to date, surpassing Brooke Olson of the University of Minnesota Duluth's all-time scoring mark. Miller has 1,629 all-time conference points, which is the most all-time. Miller joins former Minnesota Crookston men's basketball player Harrison Cleary, who is the all-time leading scorer for NSIC men's basketball. The duo makes the NSIC the only conference where the all-time men's and women's leading scorers attended the same university. Miller also set the school's scoring mark, and is the only Golden Eagle player ever to eclipse 2,000 overall points with 2,121 career points.
Anna Westby (Fr., F, Eveleth, Minn.) chipped in 11 points, eight boards, and two blocked shots. Rayna Klejeski (Jr., F, Barnum, Minn.) added 10 points and seven boards, including 6-of-6 from the stripe. Klejeski has seven-consecutive double-digit scoring tilts. Halle Winjum (So., G, Crookston, Minn.) chipped in eight points and five steals.
Minnesota Crookston shot 23-of-60 for 38.3 percent from the field. They went 8-of-26 for 30.8 percent from distance, and 8-of-8 from the stripe. They were narrowly outrebounded 35-33. They had 12 assists to 11 turnovers, and had nine steals.
Minot State looked to 13 points from Jaime Skeggs. She had five boards, and four assists. Taryn Hamling finished with 11 points and 10 boards. Jessica Mogen notched 11 points and four boards. Lara Dobbins added eight points. The Beavers went 22-of-57 for 38.6 percent. They went 8-of-28 for 28.6 percent from distance, and 5-of-8 for 62.5 percent from the stripe. The Beavers had 12 assists to 16 turnovers.
The game was a slow start as both teams were tied 2-2 for nearly four minutes of the first quarter, until Minnesota Crookston pushed to a 5-2 lead on a Hope Dudycha (R-Jr., G, Austin, Minn.) triple. The Golden Eagles moved to a 7-4 advantage on a fastbreak bucket from Miller. A Hamling trey tied the tilt 7-7. Miller hit a jumper to take a 9-7 lead. They would move their advantage to 11-8 with a Klejeski hoop. A Skeggs basket trimmed the deficit to 11-10 going into the quarter break.
A Maya Aguilar jumper pushed Minot State into a 12-11 lead early in the second frame. A 4-0 run, culminating with a Miller bucket put the Golden Eagles back ahead 15-12. The Beavers came within 17-16 on a Dobbins hoop with 6:03 remaining in the stanza. A WInjum triple made it a 5-0 run to put Minnesota Crookston on top 22-16 with 5:26 left to tick off in the second. The Golden Eagles widened the gap to 28-21 with a Miller jumper. A Skeggs bucket late in the quarter brought Minot State within 30-26 going into the locker room.
The Beavers began the third quarter on a 5-0 run, using a Hamling triple to go up 31-30. Miller countered with a floater, the shot that broke the NSIC scoring mark, to give Minnesota Crookston a 32-31 lead. She followed suit with a trey on the next possession off an offensive board to extend the precedence to 35-31. Minot State responded with a 5-0 run to go up 36-35 with a Hamling jumper. The two teams traded leads for a while, before the Beavers went ahead 42-37 on a Dobbins bucket. The Golden Eagles closed the stanza on a 4-0 run, with Winjum free throws to pull within one point going into the quick intermission.
Winjum opened the fourth with a trey to give Minnesota Crookston a 44-42 lead. A pair of Klejeski free throws gave the Golden Eagles a four-point edge. Minot State fought back to take a 52-51 advantage on a Tiyahna Trottier hoop with 3:25 remaining in the game. A Westby jumper gave Minnesota Crookston the lead 53-52, but Skeggs came back with a trey to put Minot State in the lead 55-53. A Dobbins bucket put the Beavers ahead 57-53 with 2:12 left. A Westby triple brought the Golden Eagles within 57-56, followed by a pair of clutch three pointers from Miller to close out the game for Minnesota Crookston with a 62-57 win. They ended the game on a 9-0 run.
The Golden Eagles have four wins where they have held opponents under 60 this season. Minnesota Crookston remains at home Saturday, February 14 for Senior Day at Lysaker Gymnasium against the University of Mary at 1:30 p.m.
