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Northeastern evened its record to 5-5 with a 76-65 triumph over Holy Cross at Solomon Court on Tuesday afternoon. Four players scored in double-digits for the Huskies in their last game before the holiday break.

Sophomore Deanna Kerkhof led all players with a career-high 25 points, while going 5-of-7 from the three-point line, in her first start of the season. The guard missed the first nine games of the year while recovering from an off-season surgery. The Wallaceburg, Ontario native added four rebounds, two steals and two assists in a team-high 36 minutes of action.

Junior Kashaia Cannon notched 20 points on the afternoon and also went 5-of-7 from the three-point line. Classmate Jamie Conroy scored 11 points and added a career-high eight assists for Northeastern, while sophomore Christine Huber also contributed 11 points.

Sophomore Afreyea Tolbert added four points, four assists, four steals and three rebounds for the Huskies while senior Mia Mayberry tied for the team-high with four rebounds.

The Crusaders were led by Alex Smith, who poured in 22 points, going 6-of-9 from beyond the arc. Whitney Fremeau also scored in double-digits for Holy Cross with 19 points.

Holy Cross struck first with a three-point field goal from Meredith Ward at the top of the arc. Northeastern turned to its full court press early and it paid off, as Conroy stepped in front of a Holy Cross pass then dished the ball to Cannon, who nailed a three-pointer, to put Northeastern on the board.

Following a Crusdarer field goal, Cannon hit her second three of the afternoon to put Northeastern ahead, 6-5. The lead would be short-lived, as Smith sunk a shot to put Holy Cross back on top. The teams exchanged field goals and the Crusaders took a 10-8 lead into the first timeout. Holy Cross tallied the first points following the break before Northeastern knotted the game at 12-12 following two consecutive baskets from Kerkhof and Huber.

The Crusaders tallied five unanswered points before freshman Jewel Tunstull scored her first points of the game with an assist from Tolbert. Tunstull then stole a Crusader pass in the middle of the lane and found Cannon, who hit a jumper from the top of the key. Smith hit a jumper on the other end to send the teams to a timeout at 6:55 with Holy Cross leading, 19-16.

Northeastern embarked on a 6-2 run following the stoppage, with Kerkhof and Conroy sinking three-pointers to put the Huskies ahead 23-21 with 3:32 left on the clock. Kerkof then drove to the basket, drawing a foul and the chance for a three-point play. The guard capitalized on her opportunity from the line to put the Huskies ahead, 26-21.

The Crusaders took the ball down the court and Fremeau hit a jumper to pull Holy Cross within three, at 26-23.The Huskies responded, as Conroy drove to the basket for a layup to make it 28-23. Smith scored from the top of the arc with 0:44 seconds left on the clock to send the teams to the locker rooms with Northeastern holding a 28-26 lead at the half.

Kerkhof hit her second three of the game to open up the second half and ignite a 7-0 Huskies run, forcing Holy Cross to call an early timeout with 17:57 on the clock. Smith converted a three for the Crusaders following the break, but the Huskies took the ball down the court and Cannon hit her third trey to maintain the Huskies' nine-point lead at 38-29. Smith would tally another three-pointer but Cannon hit two more three-pointers of her own to push the Huskies lead to 10 at 44-34. Holy Cross began to cut into the Huskies lead with a 5-0 run but Kerkhof halted the Crusaders momentum with a three-point field goal for Northeastern.

The Huskies opened up their largest lead of the afternoon, 64-50, following a three-pointer from Kerkhof and a layup from Tolbert. The Crusaders were able to bring their deficit down to nine with a Smith shot from beyond the arc and a pair of free throws from Fremeau, but Northeastern quickly pushed its lead back out to double-digits with two consecutive layups from Kerkhof and Huber.

Trailing 72-62, Holy Cross called for a timout with 0:46 left on the clock but the break in action did little to stop the Huskies, as they cruised to a 76-65 victory.

Northeastern shot a season-high 53.2 percent from the field and drilled 12-of-20 shots from beyond the arc for a 60.0% three-point field goal clip. Holy Cross shot 41.2 percent from the field and also found success from the long-range, drilling 11-of-20 attempts from three-point range for a 55.0 percent mark.

Holy Cross won the battle on the boards, outrebounding the Huskies 28-27. The Huskies dished out a season-high 16 assists while committing 13 steals on the afternoon.

Northeastern will enjoy a nine-day break for the holidays before returning to action on Thursday, Dec. 30. The Huskies will close out the non-conference portion of their schedule with a matchup against No. 24/24 Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Mass. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.

Fans can watch a replay of today's game, and all Huskies' home events, on GoNU.TV.