With the one-point victory, UNK improved to 26-5 and beats the Roadrunners (19-10) for the third time this season. The Lopers advanced to the championship game at 9 p.m. CST where they'll face fifth-seed Colorado State-Pueblo (20-9).

The game will be televised on Altitude-2 (G.I. cable channel 20).

The Thunderwolves, the hometown team, but not playing in its own arena, shocked top-seeded and NCAA Division II No. 9-ranked Fort Lewis (26-3), 70-68 in overtime.

UNK will be looking for its seventh tournament title but first since 2004. CSUP was a "Cinderella" team two years ago, winning the 2005-06 tournament as a sixth seed.

Against Metro, the Lopers led nearly the entire way but never by more then eight points. That eight-point cushion did come, however, with 4:48 left.

With three minutes to play, UNK had the ball and a 56-50 lead, but Metro made one final push. Back-to-back UNK turnovers led to five Roadrunner points and suddenly the lead was down to one with 52 seconds left.

That's when Hinkley's fourth and final assist came in handy. With the shot clock winding down, she found a wide-open Jade Meads underneath the basket for an easy layup. Meads missed the ensuing free throw but Metro couldn't take advantage, missing a three and a two-point shot.

Hinkley went 1-of-2 at the free-throw line with eight seconds left to push the lead to four. After Metro sank a 3-pointer, UNK senior Amy Mathis missed a rare free throw, but a half court heave didn't fall for the Roadrunners.

UNK shot only 43.6 percent from the field (24-of-55) and made just 7-of-13 free throws (53.8 percent). However, Metro was colder from the floor (39.3 percent) and attempted only nine free shots.

The Roadrunners did out rebound the Lopers 40-35, including 18-13 on the offensive end.

Hinkely made 5-of-11 shots to reach her point total. She also had two steals in 33 minutes of action. Meads, who has a history of haunting Metro State, finished with 12 points, five rebounds, two steals and two assists.

Mathis, the RMAC's leading scorer at 18 points per game, was held to eight points on 3-of-7 shooting. By not scoring until 12:59 of the second half, it marked only the fourth time this year Mathis failed to score in double digits.

UNK overcame that by having five others score at least five points. Included in that group was junior guard Kassi Schuppe, who had six points, five assists and five rebounds.

Metro State was paced by forward Cassondra Bratton, who grabbed 17 rebounds and scored 14 points. Also, guard Ashley Mickens had 12 of her 13 points in the second half.

NEB.-KEARNEY 59, METRO ST. 58

METRO ST. (19-10)

Mickens 5-16 1-2 13, Powers 3-8 0-0 6, Sauter 3-6 0-0 9, Torp 3-5 0-0 6, Bratton 5-12 4-6 14, Benson 0-0 0-0 0, Williamson 0-0 0-0 0, Dennee 0-0 0-0 0, Bean 4-6 0-0 8, Sinclair 1-5 0-1 2. Totals 24-61 5-9 58.

NEB.-KEARNEY (26-5)

Schuppe 3-8 0-0 6, Mathis 3-7 2-3 8 Hinkley 5-11 3-5 13, Meads 5-12 0-1 12, Mildenberger 1-5 0-0 2, Petri 2-4 0-0 5, Becker 3-4 1-2 7, Schneider 2-4 1-2 6. Totals 24-55 7-13 59.

HalftimeUNK 28, Metro St. 24. 3-point goalsMetro St. 5-14 (Mickens 2-6, Powers 0-3, Sauter 3-5), UNK 4-10 (Schuppe 0-1, Mathis 0-1, Hinkley 0-1, Meads 2-2, Mildenberger -1, Petri 1-2, Schneider 1-2). Fouled outNone. ReboundsMetro St. 40 (Bratton 17), UNK 35 (Hinkley 7). AssistsMetro St. 14 (Mickens 5), UNK 16 (Schuppe 5). TurnoversMetro St. 15, UNK 14. Total foulsMetro St. 16, UNK 15. TechnicalsNone. ANA.