Breaking Sports: Skylights thrash Battlin' Bears

MSU-Northern's Jordan Bruursema, left, rebounds a ball during Friday night's Frontier Conference women's basketball game at the Armory Gymnasium.

The Montana State University-Northern women's basketball team got a scare from the Dickinson State Blue Hawks on Thursday night. One night later, the Skylights made sure history didn't repeat itself. Northern used a big second-half push to upend the Rocky Mountain College Battlin' Bears 64-46 Friday night at the Armory Gymnasium. The win completed an important weekend home sweep for the Skylights, who are now 2-1 in the Frontier Conference.

Leading 31-24 at halftime, MSU-N ripped off runs of 8-1 and 9-1 before the halfwway point in the second half, and with Nikki Tresch nailing four three's in the final 20 minutes, the Skylights opened up a double-digit lead they wouldn't relinquish.

Tresch led the way with 18 points for Northern, while Taylor Cummings scored nine points, grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds from the point guard position, and also went 7-of-7 from the free-throw-line. Jordan Bruursema added nine points and seven boards, and Kylee Denham scored eight and earned nine rebounds, as the Skylightsd out-rebounded the Bears 40-34. Northern's defense also limited Rocky to just 24 percent shooting, even after the Bears hit five 3-pointers in the first eight minutes of the contest.

The Skylights improved to 9-5 overall and will travel to UM-Western next Thursday, and nationally-ranked Westminster College on Saturday.

For complete coverage, see Monday's Havre Daily News.