LEWISTON, Idaho -- Montana Tech's women's basketball team has its first-ever national tournament win! 

The fifth-seeded Orediggers defeated No. 12-seed Nelson (Texas), 87-75, Friday night in the first round of the NAIA tournament at Lewis-Clark State College. 

Hadley Humpherys showed up again on the big stage for Montana Tech (26-4), dumping in a game-best 27 points to go with six rebounds. Brooke Badovinac added 17 points, five steals, and four boards, while Halle Haber nearly notched a double-double with her 12-point, nine-rebound performance. 

Nelson (22-6) got the upper hand early. The Lions began the game on a 9-2 run before Tech began to claw back. The Orediggers got seven first-quarter points from Humpherys, including a 3-pointer at the end of the quarter that cut the deficit to 22-21. 

Humpherys made back-to-back layups to begin the second, giving Montana Tech its first lead of the game, but the Lions had the response. The two teams traded the leads 10 times in the period. Nelson landed the final blow, a Kora Huff basket with 46 seconds left, to take a 42-41 lead into halftime. 

Nelson appeared to gain control of the game in the third, stretching its lead out to eight points, but the Lions couldn't put Tech away. Hallie Neibauer made a couple free throws in the final minute of the quarter, and the Orediggers trailed 65-60 headed into the fourth. 

Then Montana Tech's defense buckled down. The Orediggers held Nelson to just 2-for-14 shooting in the fourth (0-for-6 from 3). Meanwhile, the offense kept rolling. Avery Carlson drilled a 3-pointer on Tech's first possession of the quarter, and Badovinac tied the game at 65 with a layup. 

After the teams traded baskets in the middle minutes, Badovinac put Tech up for good, 75-72, with a three-point play with 2:38 on the clock. The Orediggers closed the game on a 15-2 run to seal the program's first-ever NAIA tournament win. 

Paris Miller led the Lions with 23 points and nine rebounds. 

Winners of 10 straight games, Montana Tech will play host LC State Saturday at 6:30 p.m. MDT in the second round. The Warriors defeated Hope International in the other Round 1 game Friday evening. Saturday's winner earns a trip to the Round of 16 in Sioux City, Iowa at the NAIA's championship site. 

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