ST. PAUL - The Martin Luther College women's basketball team's attempt at an upset of University of Northwestern-St. Paul (UNW) fell short in the fourth quarter of a 62-56 loss in Saturday's regular season finale.

The Eagles entered the game hoping to clinch at least a share of the UMAC regular season championship, but the Knights made sure to show that they were ready to play from the start. After the first quarter ended tied 12-12, the Eagles were able to put together a strong second quarter to take a 32-25 lead into the half.

The third quarter was owned by the Knights, who outscored UNW 21-13 thanks to a smothering defensive effort that held the Eagles to only 20.0 percent shooting for the period to take a 46-45 lead into the fourth quarter.

The final period started strong for the Knights as they made their first two attempts from the field and pushed their lead to 54-49 with 6:28 to go, but the Eagles had one last run in them. UNW finished the game on a 13-2 run the rest of the way, including scoring the game's last seven points after Lauren Paulsen made two free throws to give the Knights a 56-55 lead with 3:19 to play.

MLC held the Eagles to 32.3 percent shooting overall and 25.0 percent (6-24) from beyond the three-point arc, but could not overcome a 13-0 difference in points off turnovers.

Jordyn Heckendorf had the performance of her collegiate career for MLC in defeat, setting new career highs with 26 points (8-16 on field goals, 4-8 on three-pointers) and 14 rebounds. She also led the Knights with four assists.

Paulsen was the other MLC player in double figures with 12 points and also added two blocks.

MLC fell to 8-17 on the season and 4-10 in UMAC play in defeat. UNW improved to 18-5 overall and 13-1 in league play with the win.

The Knights will return to action on Tuesday, February 22, when they travel to North Central University for the opening round of the UMAC Postseason Tournament.