HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Behind 17 points from Northern Kentucky native Liz Freihofer, the Eastern Kentucky University women's basketball comes from behind to defeat Northern Kentucky by a score of 84-75 on Saturday evening at Truist Arena.
 
Saturday's win over the Norse marked the Colonels fifth-straight win after starting the season 1-3 with losses to No. 7 LSU and Michigan State on the road.  EKU (6-3) is now 6-1 over non-power-five opponents and are averaging 78.2 points per game in the stretch.
 
Freihofer tied her career-high of 17 points for the second straight time this week, the Union, Kentucky native went 6-for-8 from the floor including an impressive 4-for-5 showing from beyond the three-point line.
 
Senior guard Kaitlyn Costner dropped 16 points shooting over 50 percent while aiding in the offensive output with a team-leading five assists alongside fellow guard Alice Recanati, who score 15 points as well in the win.
 
6-foot-3 forward Jasmine McGinnis-Taylor neared a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds over NKU in only 15 minutes of playing time due to foul trouble.
 
Northern Kentucky (2-6) decisively out-shot the Colonels 30-22 from the foul line and were plus eight on the glass.  However, EKU shot 48 percent from the floor in the game and closed the fourth quarter shooting 53 percent and 73 percent from the free throw line.
 
The Norse ended the first period of action with a 26-15 lead over EKU off a dominant shooting half, connecting on 60 percent of their shots.
 
The Colonels would thunder back with its own lopsided quarter taking a 21-14 advantage over Northern Kentucky in the second period.  Costner scored on three-straight possessions near the TV timeout and Freihofer hit a buzzer beater to bring EKU to a manageable, 40-36 deficit.
 
EKU and NKU played a contested third period that the home team would end up claiming by two points to result in a six-point 63-57 Norse lead.  Despite the deficit, EKU ended the period on a 6-2 run that would propel them into the final period of play.
 
In the fourth quarter, EKU scored its first three possessions in the paint from made layups by McGinnis-Taylor and Costner to tie the game at 65 all with 6:41 left on the clock.  Freihofer would take over the game with two three pointers to give the Colonels a four-point lead near the TV timeout.  The Colonels only allowed one basket in the final 2:15 of the game to hold off for the 84-75 come-from-behind victory.
 
Halle Idowu led NKU with 21 points going 8-of-16 from the floor while Macey Blevins dropped 14 and Kamora Morgan scored 13.  Northern Kentucky went 19-for-30 (.633) from the charity stripe on 29 personal fouls against the Colonels over Saturday's contest.
 
At the end of the third quarter, EKU had seven free throw attempts to NKU's 26.  The Colonels ended with 22 attempts going 11-for-15 from the line in the fourth quarter.
 
EKU will have an 11-day break before traveling to the Aloha State to face DII Hawaii Hilo on Dec. 11.  The game will tipoff at midnight ET and can be viewed live on PacWest Network.