A strong stretch run enabled the North Central College women's basketball team to match its highest single-season win total in the past 30 years on Saturday, as the Cardinals overcame an 11-point second-half deficit and topped College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) rival Elmhurst College, 82-79, at Gregory Arena.

The 24th-ranked Cardinals (15-1, 4-1 CCIW) matched the program's best win total since the 1983-84 campaign, which was most recently accomplished by North Central's 2004-05 squad. 

After leading throughout the first half heading into halftime with a 41-38 advantage, the Cardinals fell behind early in the second period as Elmhurst (9-7, 2-3) put together 10 straight points during a three-minute stretch to pull ahead, 48-44. The Bluejays extended their advantage to its largest at 58-47 with 12:54 to play.

A three-pointer by Corinne Rowe ignited a 13-4 Cardinal surge that narrowed the gap to 62-60 after Bobbi Johns' triple with 10:02 left. The teams traded baskets before Tess Godhardt converted a three-point play to nudge the hosts back in front. The lead changed hands seven times before Godhardt scored on a putback to tie the score at 76-76 with 3:04 to play.

The Bluejays' next two possessions resulted in turnovers, and Johns turned them into a pair of free throws and a putback to provide North Central with an 80-76 lead with 2:22 left. Elmhurst closed to within a single point at 80-79 with 51 seconds to go, and the visitors had an opportunity to score a go-ahead basket, but Mikaela Lippard's layup was off the mark. Johns was fouled on the rebound and made both free throws to help seal the victory.

Johns led the Cardinals with a career-high 22 points, including a 12 for 16 effort from the free-throw line, while Godhardt totaled 17 points and seven rebounds, Rowe put up 14 points off the bench, and Jamie Cuny provided 12 points and six blocked shots. 

Elmhurst's Fiona McMahon led all scorers with 34 points on 15 of 22 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds, while Lippard totaled 20 points and 13 boards. The Bluejays shot 59.4 percent (19 of 32) from the floor in the second half.

Now locked in a three-way tie for first place in the CCIW standings, North Central hosts Carthage College (11-5, 4-1) on Wednesday. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.