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Box Score

Feb. 21, 2015 – Needing a victory to clinch the No. 2 seed in next weekend's College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Tournament, the North Central College women's basketball team took care of business Saturday evening, sending the Senior class out in style with a 103-70 win over North Park University in the regular-season finale.

The Cardinals (21-4, 10-4 CCIW) return to postseason play for the second time in three years, as the Cardinals earned the No. 2 seed in the CCIW Tournament next weekend, taking on No. 3 seed Elmhurst College on Friday, Feb. 27 hosted by CCIW regular season champion Wheaton College.

With North Central's 13 three-point field goals tonight, the Cardinals 359 three-point field goals this season set a new NCAA Division III record, while its 1,322 three-point field goal attempts are also a new national record.

The Vikings (13-12, 5-9 CCIW) jumped out to an early 14-8 lead less than five minutes into the contest, but the Cardinals battled back over the next six minutes to take a 23-21 advantage with 9:13 to play in the opening half.

Trailing by one with just under six minutes to play in the half, North Central began an 11-0 run as Tess Godhardt started the rally with a lay-in down low, while Maryssa Cladisfollowed with one of her three long balls on the evening. 

Three possessions later, Anita Sterling connected from beyond the arch for three of her nine first half points, while Godhardt capped the run with a pair of free throws, giving the Cardinals a 37-27 advantage with three minutes to play before halftime.

Both teams struggled to get anything going offensively in the first half as North Central took a 43-34 lead into the intermission despite shooting just 27 percent from the field, but the Cardinal offense caught fire in the second half, outscoring the Vikings 60-36 while shooting at a 56 percent clip from the field.

North Central quickly increased its advantage to 20 points just over three minutes into the second half as Kimberly Wilsonand Emily Zgoda each hit from three-point range while Godhardt added a pair of lay-ups down low giving the hosts a 58-38 advantage.

The Cardinals gradually increased its lead over the remainder of the half, taking its largest lead on the final possession of the contest, cruising to a 103-70 victory.

Godhardt led all scorers with 30 points, including 21 in the second half, on 11-of-15 shooting from the field and 8-of-11 shooting from the free throw line.  Cladis also finished in double-figures on Senior Night, adding 12 points to go along with three assists and three steals.  Anita Sterling and Corrine Rowe each added 10 points off the bench, while Bobbi Johnsdishes out a game-high eight assists.

North Central will take on Elmhurst next weekend in the CCIW Tournament opener as the tip-off at Wheaton is yet to be determined.  Updates on the game time as well as links to live statistics, audio and video will be available HERE.