ALLENDALE - No. 2 seed Ashland put together a stellar fourth quarter Sunday to beat No. 4 seed Northern Michigan 65-58 and claim its sixth Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Tournament title. It was the Eagles' fourth straight tournament championship win.
Northern Michigan (22-9) stayed within striking distance of the high-flying Eagles, trailing only 46-44 after three quarters. Ashland (29-2) eventually extended a five-point lead to eight points, 63-55, when Sarah Hart canned a three-pointer with 1:39 to go. A Maddie Dackin layup at :43 made it 65-55.
Sara Loomis scored 22 points to lead four double-figure scorers for Ashland. Renee Stimpert followed with 12 points, and Jodi Johnson and Hart added 11 each. Darby Youngstrom led NMU with 26 points.
NMU appeared in the GLIAC Tournament championship game for the first time since winning the 2014 title.