SUPERIOR, Wis. – The BLC women's basketball team added another accomplishment to their incredible season as they defeated #1 UW-Superior 55-54 in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) tournament championship. The win means that the Vikings have automatically qualified for the NCAA Tournament, their first time ever in program history.
 
The biggest lead of the game for the Vikings came in the first quarter of play when they held an eight point advantage with 25 seconds remaining. The Yellowjackets would score once more before the buzzer, giving the Vikings an 18-12 lead after one. Both teams tightened up their defense in the second quarter and the Vikings were held to just seven points. They also did the job on the defensive end, holding the Yellowjackets to 11. At the half, the Vikings were ahead 25-23. Hanna Geistfeld scored 14 of her game-high 19 points in the first half.
 
The Yellowjackets came out of halftime with all the momentum as they built up a 12-point lead. Unable to find their offensive rhythm, it looked as though the Vikings season would come to an end, but they slowly began to chip away at the deficit. A pair of free throws and a long jumper from Haley Sandin began to turn the momentum back in favor of BLC. Abby Olson drove the lane for a layup right before the end of the third quarter to cut the deficit to seven points.
 
The Yellowjackets hit a jumper at the start of the fourth quarter to push the lead for nine points, but from that point on it was the Vikings who would be in control. With 3:57 remaining in the game, Hanna Geistfeld scored a in the paint to give the Vikings a one-point lead. With 1:26 left and a tie game, Hanna Geistfeld went to the line for a pair of free throws, but came up short on both. The Viking defense did their job and with 32 seconds left they were able to play for one last shot. A jumper from Haley Sandin bounced off the rim, but Hanna Geistfeld grabbed the rebound and was fouled, giving her another chance. Geistfeld connected on her first free throw and missed her second to give the Vikings a one-point lead with 2 seconds remaining. The Yellowjackets called a timeout and advanced the ball, but their last attempt would miss and the Vikings celebrated their first ever trip to the NCAA Tournament.
 
Abby Olson earned UMAC Tournament MVP honors. She finished the game with 16 points on 7-12 shooting and seven rebounds. Hanna Geistfeld scored the game-high 19 points and went 7-11 from the free throw line. Haley Sandin went 7-8 from the free throw line to finish with nine points.
 
Up Next: The Vikings will now wait to see when and where they will be playing in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

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MEDIA: If you need further information, please feel free to contact Dan DeWitt at 507-344-7856 or email ddewitt@blc.edu.