There were plenty of obstacles in the way for the Western Kentucky women’s basketball team during Sunday’s game against North Dakota at E.A. Diddle Arena.

WKU battled through foul trouble, a lengthy cold shooting stretch, a shorter bench and a rebounding disadvantage to hold off the Fighting Hawks and start 5-0 for the sixth time in program history – the first time since 2005-06.

“I was proud of the resiliency,” WKU coach Greg Collins said. “We fought some foul trouble. We got our butts handed to us on the boards tonight. We’ve got work to do there, but I am proud of how we kept fighting and kept believing.”

WKU got off to a hot start, blistering the net from 3-point range in the opening quarters. The Lady Toppers hit six 3s in the first, building a 24-11 advantage before a late North Dakota 3 cut the deficit to 10.

Western went ice cold in the second with a seven-minute scoring drought. WKU went 0-for-8, 0-for-5 from 3, during the stretch – allowing North Dakota (2-3) to use a 16-0 run to surge in front 27-24.

An Acacia Hayes bucket stopped the drought, but the Fighting Hawks scored the next five points to build a 32-26 advantage. Sophomore guard Mackenzie Chatfield provided a little spark off the bench, scoring five points in a 60-second span to help trim the deficit to 34-31 at halftime.

WKU finished the second quarter 1-for-9 from 3-point range. Collins said his team was settling for too many 3-pointers during that stretch. Hayes agreed the Lady Toppers were out of sync, allowing North Dakota to gain the momentum.

“I think there were some times in the first half where we kind of got out of ourselves and out of the way we play,” Hayes said. “We just kept telling each other that we had to come together and pull the win out.”

North Dakota scored the first two points of the second half before WKU used a 13-0 run to regain a 44-36 advantage midway through the third. The Fighting Hawks scored six straight to tie the score late in the third, but WKU was able to regain the advantage – taking a 51-49 lead after three.

The advantage grew to 67-59 after a three-point play from Destiny Salary with 3:43 remaining, but North Dakota had one final run. The Fighting Hawks cut the deficit to 72-69 in the final minute and missed a potential game-tying 3, but were able to get the ball back one more time.

WKU guard Alexis Mead was able to get a steal and a shot at a layup in the final 15 seconds, but missed the shot – only to secure the offensive rebound and a held ball. Hayes was then fouled with 9.2 seconds left, hitting both free throws to ice the game.

“I think that was very good for the team, but just to counter that, we’ve got to be good enough where we are not in that position at the end of the game,” Mead said of the late stand. “Once we get a lead and he makes substitutions, we are not having any type of drop off or anything. I think that will be a testament to us not being in that situation late in the fourth quarter.”

WKU had four players in double figures, with Hayes leading the way with 21 points. Mead added 14 points, which included her 1,000th career point at WKU – a milestone she emotionally dedicated to her dad following the game.

“We were just talking about it before the game, so I wanted to give that to him,” Mead said. “That’s all for my father.”

Salary finished with 11 points, while Chatfield added 10 points off the bench.

The Lady Toppers were without senior forward Marianna Sow, who was not with the team due to personal reasons.

WKU was outrebounded North Dakota 39-29, but was able to score 24 points off 24 Fighting Hawks turnovers.

“This team is a very unselfish team, a very hard-working team,” Collins said. “We’ve not gotten our gameplay to reflect our practice play. We are just not there yet. If you saw this team practice and how hard they compete. … We are still a work in progress and we are going to get there.”

WKU will continue a three-game homestand, hosting Tennessee State at 4 p.m. on Wednesday.