The University of Minnesota Duluth won their fifth straight semifinal game Monday afternoon after they defeated the Augustana Vikings 76-59. This is now the fifth consecutive NSIC championship game for the Bulldogs. 

The Bulldogs would start out on the defensive, putting to the test their nationally ranked top five defense. Augustana would put themselves on the board first off a UMD foul, but UMD's Brooke Olson would answer with a layup to bring the Bulldogs up by one. 

The Bulldogs would go back and forth with the Vikings, only leading them by two midway through the first quarter. But that was not the case for long as Olson would knock down her first three of the day. Taya Hakamaki and Maesyn Thiesen would immediately follow and knock down two threes of their own, giving UMD the 22-14 lead to end the first quarter. 

Olson would start the Bulldogs off once again in the second quarter with a layup and three pointer, bringing the Bulldogs lead to 27-16. Hakamaki then drained a three of her own to make it 30-16, the biggest lead of the first half. 

After an Augustana time out, the Vikings would go on a 7-0 run, cutting the Bulldogs lead to seven. Lexi Karge put a stop to the run with two consecutive good layups and brought the Bulldogs up to 34. Hakamaki then dished her second assist of the half to Kayleee Nelson who drained the three, ending the first half with the Bulldogs on top.
 
UMD jumped on the Vikings to begin the second half. Madeline Granica and Olson put up good layups to put the Bulldogs to start the third quarter. Ella Gilbertson, who ended the day with 14 points and three assists, knocked down her first three of the game to put the Bulldogs up by ten. 

The Bulldogs would start the fourth quarter with their first 20 point lead of the game. Olson and Gilbertson would dominate the fourth quarter, Olson finished in the top scoring position for the bulldogs,finishing with 24 points and going 10-17. Taya Hakamaki was today's player of the game, finishing with 14 points, seven rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block. The Bulldogs would go on to win it 76-59. 

Up Next:
The Bulldogs will face off against Minnesota State. Championship game is set for Tuesday, Feb. 28 at 4:00 pm.