Box Score The final score wouldn't show it, but the University of Minnesota Duluth needed a comeback to close the regular season with an 87-63 win over Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference rival the University of Minnesota-Crookston at Romano Gym on Saturday afternoon.

The Bulldogs' four seniors all exited the court to a standing ovation with 30 seconds remaining on the clock on "Senior Night" with their fourth-straight victory well in-hand for UMD (14-12, 11-11 NSIC), but the Golden Eagles (10-16, 7-15 NSIC) looked dominant in the early going. Minnesota Crookston led by eight just six minutes into the game, shooting an even 12-of-24 in the opening half to take a 38-34 lead to the locker room. While UMD trailed at the break, its pair of sisters - Katrina Newman and Jessica Newman - looked strong in the early going. Katrina had 12 points and eight rebounds in the opening frame, while younger sister Jessica had 11 points of her own. The Eagles needed their hot-shooting as UMD out-rebounded them 27-to-15 in the first half, including a 12-to-1 edge in Crookston's offensive end.

The Golden Eagles held the Bulldogs at arm's length in the early going of the second half, even opening its lead back up to seven points, but a three-pointer by junior point guard Alyssa Kerkhoff followed by a Kat Newman jumped gave the Bulldogs their first lead since the opening shot of the game at 48-47 with 14:43 remaining. Just before the twelve-minute mark, Kerkhoff sparked a Bulldog run with an and-one, as UMD scored 17 unanswered over a five-minute stretch to open its lead. Kerkhoff finished with eight points and 10 rebounds on the night.

Katrina Newman finished with a career night: 25 points, 17 rebounds, and a pair of steals while her sister finished with 15 points. Senior Hannah Rutten added eight points and eight rebounds off the bench, while senior guard Josephine Salmon, who has seen limited time in 2013-14, netted her first field goal of the year. UMD's final senior, Megan Lueck, was held off the board but did record an assist in her seven minutes of work. Among underclassmen, sophomore Taylor Meyer shined with 18 points and even rebounds, shooting 7-of-13 on the night.

As a squad, UMD rebounded to shoot 46.3 percent (19-of-41) in the second to finish at 39.5 percent for the game. Crookston cooled considerably to finish shooting 38.2 percent. The Bulldogs continued their rebounding pace with 55 boards to the Eagles' 34.

UMD will travel to St. Paul to open the NSIC/Sanford Health Postseason Tournament on Wednesday night against Concordia-St. Paul (21-8, 16-6 NSIC). Ranked No. 20 at the time, the Golden Bears knocked off the Bulldogs 95-63 on Jan. 3. Game time is set for 7:00 p.m.