GRAND FORKS, N.D. – An electric third quarter performance by the North Dakota women's basketball team combined with three double-figure performances helped propel the Fighting Hawks to a dominating victory over in-state opponent Mayville State on Wednesday evening, 79-30, inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.
 
Mikayla Aumer led the charge with her 18 points off six 3-pointers while Lauren Hillesheim followed close behind with 16 points from her 7-of-14 shooting and Sydney Piekny rounded out the double-figure scorers with her 12 points from her three triples. Ava Miller flirted with a double-double as she tallied a team-high 10 rebounds with eight points as Walker Demers added in another eight points and Mackenzie Hughes dished out seven assists.
 
The Fighting Hawks faced its lowest turnover total of the season with 12 in Wednesday's contest while going 28-of-70 from the floor, 13-of-34 from behind the arc and 10-of-11 from the free throw line. UND edged out its opponent in rebounding 48-46 and collected a massive 33 points off the bench.
 
North Dakota took the lead early as Piekny started exactly where she left off against Western Kentucky by knocking down another pair of back-to-back 3-pointers. A layup from Ava Miller put the home team up 8-0 and that same point spread would linger until the end of the quarter. Two jumpers and a triple from the Comets made it a five-point game but the Hawks would quickly push back and make it a 12-point game at the quarter break after a buzzer-beater 3-pointer from Finley Ohnstad forced a 19-7 score.
 
It was a calmer sort of start to the second period for both teams as North Dakota took the first two buckets via Aumer and Hillesheim. The scoreboard—featuring a 24-7 home team lead—didn't change for nearly five minutes until a three-point play from London Harris broke the streak and put UND ahead by 20. A little back-and-forth scoring soon had the Hawks ahead with a 33-13 advantage at the half.
 
And when the third quarter kicked off? North Dakota's shooting from behind the arc lit it up.
 
Wasting no time, Aumer exploded in dazzling fashion with four straight 3-pointers in just over two minutes to suddenly make it a 32-point game. The Comets finally scored a layup at the 7:19 mark and Aumer hit another triple in immediate response. The shots continued to fall for UND, culminating in nine made 3-pointers in the third quarter alone. Aumer tallied five of those as Hillesheim and Piekny each added in two during the same span.
 
The electric shooting from behind the arc combined with Demers and Ava Miller's presence in the paint helped put the Fighting Hawks forcefully ahead at 68-23 after a 35-point third-quarter performance.
 
Miranda VanderWal started the scoring for UND in the fourth with her layup at the 8:47 mark, but the Hawks remained scoreless until Anaiyah Fletcher joined the scorebook with a layup at 5:33. Three trips to the free throw line from three different Hawks and another jumper helped UND close it at 79-30 for the win.
 
Postgame Notes 

• Mikayla Aumer's six made 3-pointers mark a new career high
• Aumer's 18 points were just short of her previous career high of 19
• Lauren Hillesheim notched her first career double-figure game with her 16 points
• Sydney Piekny's 12 points also mark a new career high
• 11 total Hawks scored in the affair
• UND's 13 made 3-pointers are a season-high
• The 35-point third quarter is the highest scoring quarter for UND this season
• NoDak is now 16-1 all-time against Mayville State
• UND's total of 79 points is a season-high
• The Hawks held the Comets to 30 points, a season-low for UND opponents

  
How It Happened 
Q1: North Dakota 19, Mayville State 7
Q2: North Dakota 33, Mayville State 13
Q3: North Dakota 68, Mayville State 23
Q4: North Dakota 79, Mayville State 30
 
Up Next
North Dakota women's basketball will wrap up its December homestand and the 2025 calendar year with a Saturday matinee against Dickinson State on December 20. Tip is currently set for 1 p.m. inside the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.  

For more information on North Dakota women's basketball, visit FightingHawks.com or follow on social media @UNDwbasketball.