Oregon Tech earned its first CCC win of the season Friday despite a second half comeback by Corban.
Oregon Tech Withstands Corban's Second Half Comeback in CCC Opening Win
BOX SCORE
SALEM, Ore. – In the Cascade Collegiate Conference opener for both teams, Oregon Tech overcame a ferocious second half comeback by Corban en route to earning a 73-65 win Friday inside the C.E. Jeffers Sports Center.
With tonight's result, Oregon Tech improves to 7-2 overall and 1-0 in Cascade Collegiate Conference play. Meanwhile, Corban falls to 3-6 overall and 0-1 in league games.
OIT's Nicole Aboumrad would lead all scorers with 16 points, while three other Owls – Kassi Conditt, Maria Ramirez, and Karissa Dixon – added 14, 12, and 10 points, respectively. Conditt would register a double-double with a game-high 16 rebounds, while she teamed with Karly Leveque to hand out a team-high three assists each.
Oregon Tech would begin the first half by breaking a 2-2 tie with a 21-6 run that resulted in a 15-point lead (23-8) at the 8:54 mark on a jumper by Ramirez. Corban would get within single digits (25-16) thanks to an 8-2 run over a span of three-plus minutes, as Alison Evans hit a lay-in with 5:21 on the clock. Unfortunately, Oregon Tech would push its lead back to 17 points (33-16) with a 7-0 run that concluded on a free throw by Leveque with just under 90 seconds remaining. The difference at halftime would be 15 points (35-20) in favor of the visiting Owls.
In the second half, Oregon Tech would push its lead to a game-high 25 points (59-34) on a lay-in by Aboumrad with just over 11 minutes on the clock before the comeback started for Corban. The Warriors would pull within five points (70-65) thanks to a 31-11 run over a span of 10-plus minutes, as Jade Lowery hit a three-pointer with 26 seconds on the clock. Unfortunately, Oregon Tech would hit its free throws down the stretch resulting in an eight-point win (73-65).
Corban was led in scoring by Tess Bennett with 14 points, while Emily Tsugawa and Lowery added 11 points each. On the boards, Tara Vanweerdhuizen grabbed a team-best nine rebounds to go along with a game-high seven assists by Tsugawa.
As a team, Oregon Tech was 25-for-61 (41.0%) from the field, 2-of-9 (22.2%) from long distance, and 21-of-30 (70.0%) at the charity stripe. On the other hand, Corban combined to shoot 27-for-70 (38.6%) from the field that included a 4-for-15 (26.7%) showing from behind the three-point line and a 7-for-12 (58.3%) performance at the free throw line.
Both teams will return to action tomorrow – Saturday, December 1st – when Corban hosts the nationally-ranked Raiders of Southern Oregon in Salem and Oregon Tech closes out its CCC opening road trip against Northwest Christian in Eugene. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. for both games.