BUTTE -- A long time coming would be an understatement. 

It's been nearly two lifetimes' worth for any player on the Montana Tech women's basketball roster. 

But the Orediggers will play for a Frontier Conference tournament championship Monday, their first appearance in the title game since winning it in 1983. 

Montana Tech, ranked No. 15 in the NAIA and the second seed in the Frontier bracket, moved into the championship with a 78-74 victory over sixth-seeded Montana Western Sunday inside the Butte Civic Center. 

The Orediggers will play top-seeded Dakota State for the trophy Monday at 5 p.m. 

"Those are games that you dream about when you're a little girl," senior forward Hadley Humpherys said. 

Humpherys scored 15 points to go with eight rebounds and three assists Sunday. She was one of four Tech players in double figures. 

Halle Haber led the Orediggers (23-4) with 18 points, Brooke Badovinac added 15, and Liv Wangerin chipped in 10. 

It didn't come easy against the Bulldogs. Tech led by as many as 16 points late in the first half. The Orediggers carried a 47-33 lead at the break. 

But Montana Western would not go away. The Bulldogs (13-14) fought all the way back to tie the game at 70 on Bailee Sayler's basket with 3:32 remaining. 

Tech responded right away. After Wangerin missed a 3-pointer on the Orediggers' next possession, Haber corralled the offensive rebound and converted a three-point play. After a pair of Sayler free throws on the other end, Avery Carlson knocked down a 3 to put Tech ahead, 76-72. 

After another Western basket, Badovinac earned her way to the free-throw line with 1:47 on the clock, but she missed them both. 

Both teams' defenses buckled down after that, earning stops as time wound down. After Haber perfectly defended a Sayler (Sayler had a team-high 18 points for the Bulldogs.) isolation play in the post, Badovinac snagged the rebound and was fouled with 7 seconds left. 

This time, the sophomore made both. 

"I was pretty disappointed with myself missing the first two free throws because that doesn't happen very often," the Butte native said. "But I knew, if I got another chance, that I was going to knock them down." 

Tech's defense held on the final possession, and the Orediggers advanced. 

For head coach Jeff Graham, there was no panic on the sideline in the waning moments. 

"It's so fun to see how calm and relaxed they are," the fourth-year head coach said. "Our senior and junior leadership are just incredible." 

The key all season, the coach said, has been his team's unselfishness. 

"There's nobody on this team that cares about playing time or scoring," Graham said. "They're genuinely happy for each other, and that's why we've had success." 

That success culminated Sunday with not only the first tournament berth in 42 years, but also with an automatic qualifier to the NAIA postseason. Tech earned that by way of its runner-up finish in the regular-season Frontier standings paired with regular-season champ Dakota State's win over MSU-Northern in the other semifinal. 

It sets up the rubber match between Tech and the Trojans on Monday. DSU won on their home court January 16. The Orediggers responded with a 78-68 victory in Valley Bank Arena two weeks ago. 

The Orediggers, in the midst of an eight-game win streak, will look to cap off the program's turnaround with a conference crown. Three seasons ago, in Graham's first at the helm, Tech was 7-19 and won only three Frontier games. After a 12-17 season the year after, Montana Tech arrived on the national stage, going 18-12 and reaching the NAIA tournament only to lose at Dakota State in the opening round. The Orediggers were picked fifth in the conference's preseason coaches' poll this season. 

"I don't think many people believed we would be here right now," Badovinac said. 

But the Orediggers believed. And now they're a win away. 

"We have such a good opportunity," Humpherys said. "We've just got to come here tomorrow and work hard, play our game, and bring home the banner." 

Visit Montana Tech athletics' home online, GoDiggers.com, anytime for up-to-the-minute news and coverage of the Orediggers. Give Montana Tech athletics a like on Facebook, and follow the Orediggers on X and Instagram at @DiggerAthletics.

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