DEKALB, Ill. – Led by 23 points from Gabby Nikitinaite (Orpington, Kent, UK/Coopers School) and 20 points from Mikayla Voigt (Slinger, Wis./Kettle Moraine Lutheran), the Northern Illinois University women's basketball team earned a 70-59 win over the Akron Zips Sunday at the NIU Convocation Center.
 
"We were really solid defensively, for the most part today," said head coach Lisa Carlsen. "That gave us opportunities to find our rhythm offensively. Stops and rebounds are big for us in the ability to then push the ball and make somebody play in the open court. I thought we did a much better job of that, especially in the third quarter."
 
Nikitinaite's 23 points were a game-high and her second 20-point effort of the season. The sophomore guard was 9-for-17 from the field with three three-pointers, adding six rebounds and two steals. Voigt scored 10 of her 20 points at the free throw line, going 10-for-11 at the charity stripe. Myia Starks (Plainfield, Ill./Nequa Valley) had 11 points as Ally May (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead) led all players with 12 rebounds.
 
"I've gained some confidence over the last few games," said Nikitinaite. "I just want to keep that going. I feed off my teammates. I'm getting better adjusting to my role and what is expected of me."
 
After Akron (11-5, 2-3 MAC) scored first to open the game, NIU went on an 8-0 run capped off by threes from Nikitinaite and Riley Blackwell (Plainfield, Ind./Plainfield) to take a six-point lead with 6:10 to play in the first quarter. The Huskies led 10-4 when the Zips went on an 8-2 run of their own with a Colleen Neitzel three-pointer tying the game at 12 at the 2:55 mark. A pair of Voigt free throws and a May basket put NIU ahead 16-12 with 1:15 to play, but Akron cut the lead in half before the end of the quarter on a Shaunay Edmonds layup.
 
NIU (11-6, 3-2 MAC) led by four points early in the second quarter before the Zips went on another 8-2 run. A pair of Hailiegh Reinoehl threes put Akron back in the lead, 22-20, with 5:45 to play in the half. The Zips took their largest lead of the game at the 3:22 mark when Alyssa Clay's triple made the score 27-22. The Huskies responded with five straight points from Nikitinaite as part of a 7-0 run that put NIU back in front 29-27 with 1:03 remaining. However, Akron took a 30-29 lead into the break as Megan Sefcik drained a three-pointer in the final seconds.
 
The Huskies started the third quarter on a 10-4 run, as a pair of Voigt foul shots put NIU in the lead 39-34 with 5:52 to play. After a Sefcik three-point play at the 5:39 mark made the score 39-37, NIU went on an 8-0 run over the next 2:56 to go up 47-37. Starks scored the last six points of the spurt. In all, the Huskies outscored the Zips 21-10 in the third to take a 50-40 lead into the final period. NIU shot 50 percent from the field in the third quarter and held Akron to 23.1 percent. The Huskies took their largest lead of the game with 6:16 remaining in regulation when a Nikitinaite three-pointer put NIU ahead 60-45. NIU put the game away by shooting 54.5 percent from the field in the final quarter, making 7-of-9 free throws to win 70-59.
 
NIU shot 40 percent from the field Sunday, holding Akron to 37.5 percent. The Huskies also outrebounded the Zips 42-31, scoring 13 second chance points off of 16 offensive rebounds. NIU also scored 19 points off 18 Akron turnovers. Sefcik led Akron with 20 points.
 
The Huskies are back in action at the Convocation Center on Wednesday, Jan. 23 against Ohio. Tip-off is at 6 p.m. Tickets are available through the NIU Convocation Center Box Office by calling 815-753-PACK (7225) or by logging on to NIUHuskies.com/tickets.
 
--NIU--