ROCKFORD, Ill. - The Benedictine University women's basketball team secured the second seed in the upcoming NACC Tournament, capping the regular season with a 67-52 win at Rockford.

Benedictine led for the entire contest, scoring the first five points. Meghan Novak opened the scoring with a three-pointer. Shannon Ryan drained a three-pointer with 7:09 left in the first half to hand the Eagles a double-digit lead at 19-9. Benedictine held a 25-21 lead at the break.

The hosts were within two points at 29-27 early in the second half before an 8-0 run made the lead double digits again. Nicole Botich opened the stretch with a layup. A layup from Jasma Williams extended the lead to 39-29 with just over 15 minutes remaining. Rockford instantly pulled within eight, but could come no closer in the contest. Ryan converted a layup with 11:02 left to make the score 51-33. Benedictine went on to lead by as many as 19 points. Despite making just one three-pointer in the second, the Eagles shot over 50 percent from the floor to pull away.

Novak netted 16 points with Ryan adding 16 in the winning effort. The 16 points were a career high for Ryan, who came off the bench. Benedictine turned 25 Rockford turnovers into 27 points. The Eagles also scored 44 points in the paint.

Benedictine (16-9, 16-4) opens tourney play at home on Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. against seventh seeded Lakeland, who scored a 63-61 win over Benedictine on Saturday. As the second seed, the Eagles also have guaranteed a semifinal home game if they dispatch Lakeland. The 16 wins are the most since the 2010-11 season.