Sophomore Katie Steigleman scored more than 25 points for only the second time this season, as she helped Corban defeat nationally-ranked College of Idaho Saturday evening to possibly wrap up a playoff spot.
Corban Upsets No. 16-Ranked College of Idaho
BOX SCORE
SALEM, Ore. – Sophomore Katie Steigleman (Eugene, Ore.) scored a game-high 26 points on 10-for-22 shooting from the field, as Corban's women's basketball team overcame a 13-point halftime deficit to defeat the NAIA's No. 16-ranked Coyotes of The College of Idaho, 84-81, Saturday night inside the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center.
On Senior Night and without eleventh-year head coach Terry Williams due to family illness, Corban over came pregame excitement and heavy hearts improving to 12-17 overall and 7-10 in Cascade Collegiate Conference play. Meanwhile, The College of Idaho had its six-game winning streak snapped en route to falling to 17-6 overall and 13-3 in league play.
With tonight's win, Corban possibly wrapped up a playoff berth pending Friday's outcome against conference rival Northwest Christian. If the Warriors can come away from the Morse Event Center in Eugene with a victory then Corban will advance to the conference post season tournament for the second straight season. On the other hand, the Warriors could be looking on the playoff picture from the outside if Northwest Christian can pick up a win next Friday and Evergreen can sweep its final two games against College of Idaho and Eastern Oregon.
In tonight's game, Steigleman was aided scoring-wise by a pair of Warriors – junior Jennesa Miller (Mica, Wash.) and freshman Emily Tsugawa (Gladstone, Ore.) – who scored 16 and 14 points respectively. Senior Monique Tribble (Coquille, Ore.) and sophomore Becky Buhler (Clackamas, Ore.) added eight and seven points respectively, while senior Jennifer Hansen (Mulino, Ore.) turned in her best performance as a Warrior with five points and two rebounds. On the boards, Miller grabbed a team-high nine rebounds to go along with Tsugawa's game-high eight assists.
Corban came out of the locker room with fire in its eyes, as the host Warriors scored the opening eight points on a perfect 4-for-4 shooting from the field capped by Miller's driving lay-in with 18:25 remaining. The Warriors would extend their lead to as much as 10 points (14-4) thanks to a Tsugawa old-fashion three-point play before The College of Idaho used a 13-2 run over a span of three-plus minutes to grab its first lead of the game (17-16) with 12:21 to go in the opening half. Corban would build its lead back to five points (24-19) with an 8-2 run before The College of Idaho retook the lead and extended it to as much as 15 points (49-34) thanks to a 30-10 run that concluded with a pair of Katie Strunk free throws with 36 ticks left on the clock. Freshman Melissa Jones (Klamath Falls, Ore.) would cap the opening half's scoring with a second chance lay-in for the margin of 13 points (49-36) heading into the locker rooms.
The second half would begin with Corban using an opening 16-2 run en route to grabbing a one-point lead (52-51) following a Hansen lay-in with 16:48 left. The College of Idaho would push its lead back to nine points (66-57) thanks to a 15-5 run that was capped via a Katelin Shannon three-pointer with just under 11 minutes remaining. Not wanting to go away quietly, Corban would mount another comeback via an 18-8 run en route to grabbing a one-point lead (75-74) following a Tribble jumper in the paint with 3:51 on the clock. Following a Coyote turnover, Corban would get a clutch three-point bucket from Buhler that extended its lead to four points (78-74) with 3:35 left. The host Warriors would never relinquish their lead, as timely defense, lay-ins, and clutch free throw shooting down the stretch would result in a three-point come-from-behind victory (84-81) against the nationally-ranked Coyotes.
The College of Idaho was led by preseason Conference Player of the Year Nicole Gall, who tallied 24 points on 8-for-24 shooting from the field that included a 4-for-18 performance from beyond the arc. Gall was aided scoring-wise by Meghan Hughes, Strunk, and Whitney Owen, who scored 16, 14, and 12 points respectively. Strunk registered a double-double thanks to a game-high 15 rebounds, while Owen also tallied a double-double by pulling down 10 boards to go along with Shannon's team-leading four assists.
As a team, Corban shot 32-for-65 (49.2%) from the field that included an 18-for-36 (50.0%) showing in the second half. The Warriors were also 4-for-10 (40.0%) from beyond the three-point line and 16-for-23 (69.6%) at the free throw line. On the other hand, The College of Idaho was 28-for-77 (36.4%) from the field, 7-for-27 (25.9%) from long distance, and 18-for-32 (56.3%) at the charity stripe.
Corban will step onto the floor one more time during the regular season on Friday, February 19th, against conference rival Northwest Christian beginning at 5:30 p.m. inside the Morse Event Center in Eugene.