This stoiry, photo courtesy of NMU Sports Imformation. Click the AUDIO button to hear post-game comments from Coach Casey Thousand and Sarah Newcomer.
ALLENDALE, Mich. – The Northern Michigan women's basketball team hung tight with the Wayne State Warriors for three quarters, but a 24-13 final frame for WSU powered them past the Wildcats 77-61 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, ending Northern's season at 25-8.
The Wildcats faced a slim 16-12 deficit after one, but outscored Wayne State 18-13 in the second quarter to lead 30-29 at halftime. NMU pushed its lead to five in the third, but a late 9-0 run gave WSU a 53-48 lead heading to the fourth. The 'Cats closed it to two, but 24 of the next 30 points over seven minutes went the way of Wayne State as they pulled away for the win. They advance to play Grand Valley in tomorrow's regional semifinal.
NMU's bench provided the spark, accounting for 33 of the 61 points (20 of 30 in the first half) and 18 of 37 rebounds. Sydney Whitehouse led the way with 15 points and nine rebounds, Faith Walder chipped in 10 points, and Jordyn Schmittdiel had six boards and two blocks. All three underclassmen will be key figures for the 'Cats next season. Sarah Newcomer paced the starting five with 11.
Wayne State was led by McKenna Ferguson with 21 points and eight steals, followed by Jaci Tubergen with 15 points and Gabi Lutchka with 14.
While Northern shot 41.0% (25-61) from the field to Wayne's 40.0% (26-65), the Warriors made their difference from deep, going 8-19 (42.1%) to NMU's 6-29 (20.7%). That included WSU going 5-8 (62.5%) from deep in the second half to Northern's 2-15 (13.3%).
Northern also committed twice as many turnovers as WSU (16-8), leading to a 21-5 advantage for the Warriors in points off turnovers.
Despite the loss, the Wildcats close the season at 25-8, marking their most wins since the 1999-2000 season. It was also their third-straight season with 20+ wins and reaching the NCAA Tournament.
