JAMESTOWN – Late in their first NSIC basketball season, the Jamestown Jimmie women have boosted themselves in a big way.  Meanwhile, the Jimmie men are back in a tie for their division lead after a tough loss.

The UJ women rallied from 12 points down in the first half Thursday to defeat MSU Moorhead 65-58 at Harold Newman Arena and win consecutive NSIC games for the first time.  Jamestown’s men were edged by the Dragons 76-74 when Sam Hondl was fouled while hitting a go-ahead jumper in the lane with 2.3 seconds to play.

Women: Jamestown 65, MSU Moorhead 58
Both teams ran off big runs in the game. After Jamestown (6-15, 4-13 NSIC) trailed 2-0, they then forged an 11-2 run. Then, MSU Moorhead (10-11, 7-10) scored the next 16 points and held the Jimmies scoreless for 8:53. Jamestown rallied with a 13-2 run in the last 5:13 of the second quarter and trailed just 27-26 at halftime.

Then, Jamestown generally and Allie Berns & Jessika Lofstrom specifically went to work. In a third quarter where the Jimmies outscored the Dragons 22-12, Berns, who had been held to one field goal and three points in the first half, scored 11. Lofstrom, who had managed just two points and three fouls in the first half, scored eight in the quarter. They helped extend the Jamestown run to 30-7 over nearly 11 minutes and UJ led 48-39 through three quarters. MSU Moorhead came no closer than six points in the final stanza.

Berns scored 20 with seven rebounds. Haidyn Crockett added 14 with a career high seven rebounds. Lofstrom finished with 12.

Ashton Safranski scored 17 with seven rebounds and four assists for MSU Moorhead.

This is the first winning streak for the Jimmie women since victories over Dickinson State and Bismarck State to open the season. It was the first win for Jamestown over MSU Moorhead since 1999.

Men: MSU Moorhead 76, Jamestown 74
In a game played with very high quality, a good bounce helped MSU Moorhead (11-12, 8-9 NSIC) win it. With Jamestown (11-2, 9-8) up 74-73, the Dragons’ Dominic Gooden missed a baseline jumper with just under 10 seconds left. The rebound went off the hands of MSUM’s Rodrick Payne and right to Hondl, who hit a fadeaway jumper from 11 feet along the right lane line as he was fouled by Jamestown’s Davis Walker. Hondl hit the free throw for the two-point visitor lead.

Jamestown called a time out, advanced the ball to midcourt, then called their last time out. Cole Glasgow found Owen Hektner open on the left wing, but the former Dragon missed what would have been a game-winning three-pointer.

Walker had put the Jimmies ahead 74-73 with a left corner three-pointer with 34.2 seconds remaining for the game’s 14th lead change. Hondl’s winning basket constituted the 15th.

Jamestown led by seven points early in the first half before MSU Moorhead gained a 41-37 halftime lead. The Dragons went up by as much as 10 in the second half before Walker hit two go-ahead baskets for the Jimmies, a layup with 4:18 left and his late three-pointer.

Anthony Walters scored 17 for Jamestown. Thomas Diew had 13 points and seven rebounds. Walker scored 11. Glasgow had 10.

Isa El-Amin scored 24 points with four second-half threes for MSU Moorhead, who had lost in December to Jamestown for the first time since 1998.

Jamestown is tied at 9-8 for the NSIC North Division lead with Minnesota Duluth and Northern State, who both won Thursday. All three teams lead MSU Moorhead by one game.

Jamestown will host Minnesota Crookston in a Saturday doubleheader at Harold Newman Arena. Coverage will begin at 12:30 PM on The Voice of the Jimmies, Jamestown 107.1. Live and archived video will be available on the NSIC Network.