NEW ULM, Minn. - The Martin Luther College women's basketball team started strong and never looked back in a 75-57 win over Northland College on Saturday.

The Knights opened the game with a 21-18 advantage after one quarter, but put the game away in the second quarter when they outscored the Lumberjills 27-12 en route to a 48-30 halftime advantage.

MLC shot 61.5 percent from the field in the second quarter, and Jordyn Heckendorf led all players with 12 first-half points. 

The Knights' shooting cooled down in the second half, but the defense made sure the Lumberjills could not get any closer than 15 points the rest of the way to secure the win.

The MLC offense finished the day shooting 45.5 percent from the field, and the Knights were also great from the free throw line (18-21). 

Defensively, MLC held Northland to 34.4 percent overall and just 1-7 from beyond the three-point arc.

Heckendorf led the Knights in points (19), assists (five) and steals (five) and didn't commit a turnover in 30 minutes of action. 

Lauren Paulsen joined her in double figures with 13 points and a career-high five blocks.

The win was the third in a row for the Knights, giving the program its longest winning streak since the 2016-17 season.

MLC improved to 8-13 on the season and 4-6 in UMAC play with the win. Northland fell to 1-15 overall and 0-10 in league play in defeat.

The Knights will return to action on Friday, February 11, when they host Minnesota Morris in a game scheduled to tip off at 5:30 p.m.