Kylie Hardison hit three second half 3's in 68-49 win over EOU
CALDWELL, Idaho - Kylie Hardison hit a pair of three-pointers in a 16-2 second-half run, as The College of Idaho rolled to a 68-49 victory over No. 25 ranked Eastern Oregon, 68-49, in a Cascade Collegiate Conference Championships semifinal contest inside the J.A. Albertson Activities Center.
With the win, the Lady Yotes (21-8) move on to their fifth-straight CCC title game, traveling to No. 10 ranked Corban University on Monday night. The C of I also locked up their fourth-straight berth to the NAIA Division II National Championships with the victory, as the Coyotes claim the second automatic berth from the CCC (as Corban was the regular-season champ).
Eastern (23-7) trailed just 35-32 with 13:35 to play, but a Diamond Mitchell three-point play and a Hardison trey started the surge. Dayna Drager connected on four-straight free throws and Hardison canned another triple, extending the lead to 51-34 with 9:07 left - with EOU never cutting the margin below 14 the rest of the way.
The Lady Yotes won their 35th-straight game when holding an opponent under 50 points, while improving to 12-0 all-time in home playoff games under head coach, Reagan Rossi
A 16-5 run by the hosts over a 12-minute stretch of the first half, capped by a Dayna Drager three, to give the Yotes a 22-11 lead with 4:18 left in the period. EOU would not quit, as a Kyle Miller runner inside the final 30 seconds closed a 8-0 run by the Mounties, cutting the margin to 22-19 at the break.
Four C of I players scored in double-figures, led by 14 points from Felicity Jones. Tina Fakahafua had 12 points and eight rebounds, Haridson scored 11 points off the bench, Laura Geis tallied 10, and Dayna Drager scored eight. Brooke Randall scored 14 to lead Eastern, inclduing 9-of-9 shooting from the foul line.
The Yotes held a 41-26 edge on the glass, with the two teams combining for 44-of-54 free throws on the night.