Jones Scores 30 But Geoducks Lose at Whitman
WALLA WALLA - Cayla Jones scored 30 points to lead The Evergreen State College in scoring Saturday afternoon but the Geoducks came out on the short end of an 89-76 women's basketball decision to the Whitman Blues at Whitman's Kim Evanger Raney Classic.
Jones was 6-for-11 from the field and 17-for-20 from the free throw line in scoring her 30 points, which is tied for sixth on the Evergreen single-game scoring list. The 17 free throws made and the 20 attempts are also Evergreen women's basketball single-game records.
Jahpera McEachin added 24 points for the Geoducks (0-2), who shot 39 percent from the field for the second consecutive game. Evergreen won the rebound battle, 40-37, but turned the ball over 21 times compared to just 11 for the hosts.
Whitman (4-1), which advanced to the NCAA Division III Elite Eight last year, had four players in double-figure scoring, led by Casey Poe with 26.
As they had in a 66-64 loss to Whitworth the previous afternoon, the Geoducks started fast against the Blues, leading by as many as eight points in the first quarter before settling for a 22-18 advantage after the first 10 minutes. After a 9-0 run put Whitman back on top, Evergreen regained the lead by as many as six points before seeing the home team close out the half on top, 40-39.
Whitman outscored Evergreen, 26-17, to pull away to a 10-point lead after three quarters. After a Jones free throw closed the gap to nine points early in the fourth, the Blues again built a double-digit lead and maintained it the rest of the way.
Both Jones and McEachin earned all-tournament honors, Jones scoring 48 points and McEachin 39 in the two contests.
The Geoducks return to action at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday when they host the Pacific University Boxers in another non-conference contest.