ST. PAUL, Minn.-- Women's Basketball struggled out of the gate and never got their offense going on Saturday afternoon. The Rams dropped the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference opener to The University of Northwestern by an 82-49 final score at the Erickson Center.

North Central (4-6, 0-1 UMAC) returned to action after the Christmas break on the road on Saturday for the opening weekend of UMAC play. The Rams fell behind by double-figures early on and trailed 48-26 at halftime after shooting just 9-31 in the first 20 minutes. The second half was not any better with a 9-29 shooting effort as the Eagles pulled away.

Junior Jamie High (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo) led NCU with 16 points and 8 rebounds. Freshman Lizzy Swanson (Askov, Minn./East Central) added 11 points and 8 rebounds.

North Central continues play on Tuesday when they travel to Macalester College (St. Paul, Minn.) for a non-conference match-up. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.