RIVER FALLS, Wis. – St. Thomas rallied from a 12-point deficit midway through the fourth quarter to tie Loras, force overtime and win a first-round NCAA Division III playoff game 76-68 here on Friday night.

Senior guard Katie Stone led the No. 8 Tommies (25-3) with a career-high 32 points, including 20 points in the last 10:28 of the game. Junior center Kaitlin Langer had 25 points, including 21 in the second half, before fouling out with six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

"This one has ice in her veins," Coach Ruth Sinn said after the comeback, pointing to Stone. "She loves the big moments, and she stepped up tonight."

The win advances St. Thomas to a second-round game at 5 p.m. Saturday against the winner of Friday night's second game between host UW-River Falls and Wheaton.

Both teams struggled from the field in the first half, with St. Thomas holding a 21-19 lead at halftime, and both teams got hot in the third quarter.

After Langer fouled out with the Tommies trailing 58-47, the situation looked bleak for the MIAC regular-season and playoff champions. Stone took over the game. She scored 10 points down the stretch, including back-to-back 3-pointers that cut the Loras lead to 61-58.

After a Loras free throw, sophomore forward Lauren Fischer hit a 3-pointer to draw the Tommies to 62-61, and Fischer's basket in the lane tied the game at 63-63 with 18.8 seconds left.

The Duhawks missed a shot near the buzzer and the game went into overtime.

It was all Stone – again – in the extra session as she scored 10 of St. Thomas' 13 points. Her 32 for the game was easily a career high, topping her 23 last weekend in the MIAC playoffs.

The win was the 15th in a row for St. Thomas over nearly two months and extended the four-year record of this year's seniors to 104-15 (.874). The Tommies have an all-time NCAA tournament record of 40-21 in 21 appearances since 1984 (41-21 would be .661).