North Dakota won a tough battle against St. Thomas in the quarterfinals on Friday, 80-67.
Both teams got off to a hot start, trading baskets back and forth. St. Thomas held an 11-9 lead at the first media timeout. At the end of the first, St. Thomas led 16-15, fueled by nine first-frame points from Amber Scalia. Kiera Pemberton led the Fighting Hawks with eight first-quarter points.
Fatima Ibrahim put up a couple of blocks to return possession to UND, allowing Kiera Pemberton to score back-to-back and gain the largest lead of the day, 29-22. A Jo Langbehn put-back at the buzzer brought the Tommies back within four, down 31-35 at the half. Ibrahim’s block total was six at the break.
Out of the half, the Tommies fought their way back within one, but a Tommie turnover led to a Nevaeh Ferrara Horne layup and a Jayla Owen triple, stretching the Fighting Hawks’ lead to 11. UND maintained a lead throughout the latter parts of the game behind strong offensive efforts from Pemberton and Schiller, up 73-65 with a minute and a half left. The Fighting Hawks continued to add to their lead, taking the contest
UND was led by 30 points from Pemberton. Schiller, the 2025 Summit League Freshman of the Year, added 17 points, while Ferrara Horne tallied 10. Ibrahim snagged nine rebounds and six blocks.
Pemberton saw something different on the court today.
“I just found different ways to score. They were guarding me a little differently than the previous two games and it was just a little bit more open. “
Schiller was proud of the team’s drive and passion.
“We came into this game, we really wanted it and I think we showed it out there.”
Coach Mallory Bernhard was grateful for the opportunity to come together as a team and get a big win.
“There’s not a player in that locker room that’s been able to come off the floor with a win [in Sioux Falls] and I’m just so happy for them.
The Fighting Hawks will face No. 1 South Dakota State at 12 p.m. Saturday, March 8 in the semifinal round in Sioux Falls.
St. Thomas was led by Langbehn’s 26 points. Scalia added 18, while Sammy Opichka tallied a double-double 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Langbehn, one of six seniors, reflected brightly on her time as a Tommie.
“St. Thomas was just a standout for me. It made it very easy for me. Ruth Sinn welcomed me with open arms. People showed me love and care, and it was just a really obvious, easy decision for me.”
Coach Ruth Sinn credited her opponent.
“They came to play today, and they did a great job. Really on the defensive end, they made things difficult for us. I give them a lot of credit with that.”
As for her team, she was proud of their fight.
“I love the way they battled. I’m really proud of our group.”
Sinn was also positively looking forward to the future.
“The neat thing that these seniors did for us, they laid a foundation. It’s going to be them taking that next step, these underclassmen. They’re excited about their turn.”
St. Thomas finishes the season 17-13, and 9-8 in conference play.