GRAND FORKS, N.D-- Fallyn Freije scored a career-high 26 points and added 12 rebounds while Lexi Klabo complemented her effort with 23 points and 10 boards to lift host North Dakota to a 79-68 non-conference win over in-state rival North Dakota State Saturday afternoon at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.
The junior duo led the way for the Fighting Hawks throughout as Freije had a game-high 13 points at halftime, but UND held just a 30-25 lead. It was a 14-3 North Dakota spurt at the end of the second quarter that gave the home team that halftime advantage.
With NDSU (5-5) leading 22-16 in the second, UND would score 12 straight and 14 of the final 17 points in that frame to gain control. The run started with a Freije jumper and a triple with buckets from Mikayla Reinke-- making her first career start-- and Akealy Moton to flip a six-point deficit into a half-dozen lead at 28-22.
The Bison fought back to tie the score four more times in the third quarter, despite trailing by as many as eight. The game entered the final 10 minutes all square at 50-50. Freije opened the final period with a basket then free throws from her and Jill Morton stretched the advantage to five.
The key possession in the game came when Freije and Klabo each blocked shots which led to a Bailey Strand transition three as the crowd of 2,571 came alive. Although the game got back to four, Morton would put an exclamation point on big win with a slicing drive and finish on the reverse lay-in with 2:06 to go to all but seal it.
Klabo and Freije combined to go 15-for-31 from the floor for 49 points and 22 combined rebounds. Strand added nine points and four assists while Morton chipped in eight. Melissa Dailey recorded five assists without a turnover as North Dakota had just eight miscues as a team for the game.
UND (5-3) continues its homestand Tuesday against Mayville State before a Dec. 18 home tile against Southwest Minnesota State and a road contest on Dec. 21 at South Dakota to closeout the non-conference slate.
Notes: Mikayla Reinke made her first career start ... Faith Dooley saw her first action in a UND basketball uniform after completing her volleyball career (played final 12 seconds along with Klabo, Frieje, Moton and Reinke for five North Dakota natives on the floor at the same time) ... Freije registered her sixth double-double in the win while Klabo's was the 10th of her career ... UND turned the ball over just eight times total, the fewest of the season.
