BOX SCORE
LA GRANDE, Ore. – The Eastern Oregon University women’s basketball team knocked off Northwest University Saturday, 70-69.
EOU seemed in control early, leading by as many as 10 points twice in the first half, and took a 35-28 lead into the locker room at halftime. A Nicole Redd three-pointer gave Eastern a 40-28 lead just into the second half. A pair of Samantha Flett free throws gave the Mountaineers their largest lead of the game, 48-33, with 13:37 left in regulation.
Eastern led by eight points with 1:01 left in the game, and that’s when Northwest made its rally. The Eagles chipped into the lead and cut it to 69-64 with 28 seconds left. A Jessalyn Jackson lay-in cut the lead to three points with 15 seconds remaining. Brittney Marshall then stole an inbounds pass and turned and hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 69 with 11 seconds left.
Kelsea Hurliman would then hit one of two free throws to give Eastern a 70-69 lead. Jackson got the rebound with six seconds left and found Erika Hornyak who turned the ball upcourt and got a shot off just on the other side of half court. The shot rimmed out and EOU held on.
The Mountaineers (9-1) (2-0) won their sixth straight game, and swept the opening weekend of conference play for the first time since the 2007 season. Eastern avenged a season sweep by Northwest last year in the team’s two 2009-10 meetings. The Mountaineers are now 25-8 all-time against NU.
Kyle Miller scored a team-high 17 points on 6 of 19 shooting from the field to lead Eastern Oregon. Vintea Georges had 13 points. Kelsea Hurliman added 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds. Shaylee Nielsen tossed a team-high four assists.
Northwest’s Jessalyn Jackson had a phenomenal night with 22 points, 15 rebounds, and three blocks. Emily Drivstuen added 10 points.
The Eagles (6-4) (1-1) shot 44 percent from the field and 26 percent from behind the arc. The Mountaineers were 37 percent from the field and 8 of 19 from three-point range. EOU outrebounded Northwest, 36 to 32. NU had 16 assists to Eastern’s 11.
The Mountaineers will travel to NCAA Div. 2 Northwest Nazarene Dec. 11 for their next game. EOU hosts Linfield College on Dec. 12 for its next regular season game. The Eagles host Northwest Christian on Dec. 10.