The University of Minnesota Duluth women's basketball team earned its first Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) victory of the 2025-26 season against the Bemidji State University Beavers. In an embattled fourth quarter, the Bulldogs were able to climb back to a double-digit lead to force a 74-63 win inside Romano Gymnasium.

Leading the scoring effort was Myra Moorjani with 18 points, going 44.4% from the field while also earning five rebounds, three assists, three steals, and two blocks. Following behind in the double-digit points category was Lexi Karge (14), Grace Counts (13), and Claire Bjorge (10).

Opening up the match, the Bulldogs maintained a slight advantage over the Beavers, going on a 13-9 run in the first six minutes. It would be a combined effort from Drew Johnston, Grace Counts, Karge, Moorjani, and Maria Counts to push an 11-5 scoring run over Bemidji to finish the quarter with a colossal 24-14 lead.

The second quarter saw the Bulldogs pour on the pressure with a 14-6 scoring that put the Beavers behind by 18 in the first six minutes. Bemidji continued to stay in it, chipping the UMD lead down to 40-30 by the halftime break.

Coming out of halftime, the momentum began to shift out of the Bulldogs' favor as the Beavers came out determined on a 9-2 run that put them three points behind. A jumper from Evyn Eppinga put them within one point of the Bulldogs, but a quick Grace Counts three-pointer kept the Beavers at bay. In the final three minutes, the two teams evened out scoring, finishing the third period with UMD leading 53-49.

After going back and forth to start the final ten minutes, another layup by Eppinga put Bemidji on top at 56-55, but Bickford did not let it stand, forcing a layup under 30 seconds later. From then on, UMD held the lead for the duration, expanding the gap all the way back to 11 points by the end for a final score of 74-63.

As a team, the Bulldogs shot 41.1% from the field and overtook Bemidji's shot attempts 73 to 58. UMD capitalized on Bemidji with 22 points off turnovers, while the Beavers had only four. Vanessa Bickford led the way in rebounds with eight (two offensive) of the team's 42.

After earning their first home win of the 2025-26 season, the Bulldogs host the University of Minnesota Crookston next Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. inside Romano Gymnasium.