LAKE CHARLES — Senior Mya Blake poured in 29 points, but the Northwestern State women’s basketball team saw its season come to an end with a 69-54 loss to No. 4 UIW on Monday afternoon at the Legacy Center in the quarterfinals of the Southland Conference Tournament.

The Demons (16-15) ended a turnaround season that was the program’s best in a decade.

“I am incredibly grateful for this entire team,” head coach Anna Nimz said. “We weren’t the better team today, but these girls did a lot of things this season that haven’t been done in a decade. There’s a lot to be really proud of, and that is what I am taking away from this game and this tournament. We didn’t want to go out the way we did today, but hats off to UIW.”

A team that shot under 30 percent from deep in both overall and during conference play, UIW (18-12) made seven 3-pointers in the first half, including going 4-of-6 in the first quarter to set the tone for the game.

UIW averaged less than five 3-pointers per game but exploded for nine triples in 20 attempts Tuesday.

Every time Northwestern State made a run to cut into the Cardinals lead, UIW had an answer.

UIW started hot, making four of its first five 3-point shots, all from four different players, to build a 14-6 lead, before the Demons fought back, scoring the final five points of the quarter off a 3-pointer from Blake and layup from Sharna Ayres.

The Cardinals used a run in the second quarter to gain separation, and never allowed the Demons to seriously threaten afterward. The No. 4 seed stormed out to a 35-25 halftime advantage.

The lead grew to 13 at 41-28 early in the third quarter, before a pair of Ayres free throws and a Blake 3-pointer cut the deficit to six points just past the midway point of the third quarter, but that was as close as it got rest of the way.

UIW embarked on a run to seal it, going on a 9-0 spurt to blow the game open.

The final basket was a historic one for the Demons, as Ayres buried a triple to cut it to 50-42, the 213th made 3-pointer for Northwestern State this season, a new school record. Individually, Ayres finished her career in third place in career made 3-pointers at Northwestern State.

Outside of Blake, freshman of the year Vernell Atamah scored 10 points, the only other Demon in double figures.

UIW shot 42.1 percent for the game, while Northwestern State was held to 33.3 percent.