The Northwest Christian University women's basketball team claimed fifth place in the Bruce Henderson Memorial Capitol City Classic on Saturday with a 69-57 win over Menlo College.
The Beacons trailed by nine points at the half and after the Oaks opened the second with a jumper on their first possession they were leading 38-27. The halftime speech in the NCU locker room must have gotten through to the women, however, as they went on a 29-4 run to blow open the game.
Head Coach Liz Turner-Bolton said, "Tonight was a complete gut check for the kids. We got into foul trouble early and often and played with a short rotation, but we did a really great job shutting down their schemes."
NCU (7-4) was led by Jess Anderson, scoring a career high 21 points. Aly Bruns punched in a double-double, scoring 16 points along with a game-high ten rebounds. Katie Collins scored ten points and seven rebounds and Lindsey Shearer scored nine points and seven rebounds before fouling out. Shearer was named to the All-Tournament second-team after the event.
Menlo (2-5) shot just 23% in the second half and was 0-for-11 from three-point range. The Oaks were led by Lauren Adamek with 14 points while Jolise Limcaco scored 13.
The Beacons head into next weekend's conference opener at Southern Oregon with a high level of confidence after a successful pre-season schedule. "I am so proud of this group," said Turner-Bolton. "They are playing so hard for each other and it's amazing to see. We have come through the pre-season in great shape and I am excited to see what we can accomplish in the CCC."
The Beacons will play at Southern Oregon next Friday at 5:30 pm. NCU is 1-8 all-time against the Raiders but knocked off SOU the last time they faced off, 80-58 in Ashland.