Shooting Struggles Hurt the Wolves in Loss to Northwest Christian
College Place, Wash. – The Northwest Christian University Beacons finished up their weekend series with the Wolves on Sunday afternoon, here in College Place. Northwest Christian (5-5, 2-1 CCC) came into this game looking to win their second straight after beating the Wolves (1-9, 0-2 CCC) on Saturday night. Double-doubles by Morgan McKinney (23 & 10) and Connor
Borigo (11 & 10) would fuel the Beacons to a 82-52 win for a weekend sweep of the Wolves.
The Beacons picked up right where they left off in their previous win over the Wolves, as Jenna
Christenson drained a triple with the first shot attempt of the game. The first quarter proceeded with high intensity, with both teams whipping the ball around and hoisting open threes. Nine of the Beacons' first 13 points came by way of the three-ball. At the end of the first quarter, Northwest Christian held an 18-13 lead.
The Second quarter quickly became a sloppy run of play for both teams, as Northwest Christian's
Dani Baker hit the only field goal for either team in the first three minutes. The Beacons were able to bust the game open midway through the quarter, however, taking a 28-13 lead after Jenna
Christenson hit another three with five minutes left in the first half. The Wolves showed good resolve, however, as they took advantage of the Beacons' foul trouble on their way to a 10-2 run. Going into the halftime break, the Beacons maintained their lead at 32-25.
The first half of the third quarter belonged to Conner
Borigo whose seven quick points sparked a 20-6 run for the Beacons, giving them a 52-31 advantage. The Beacons' offense continued to out-muscle and out-hustle the Wolves' defense for the remainder of the third quarter, using dribble penetration to get easy buckets in the paint on their way to a 61-35 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Morgan
Mckinney began to take control of the game in the fourth, securing her double-double, and passing the 20-point mark with 23 points and 10 rebounds. The Beacons took control early in the fourth, as
Dani Baker gave the Beacons a 30-point lead with nine minutes left in the contest. It simply was not the Wolves' night offensively, going 15-59 from the field, and 5-36 from three-point range. Northwest Christian will head back to Eugene, Ore. with another win under their belt, taking the victory here today by a score of 82-54.
The Wolves will now look ahead to a battle against Pacific Lutheran University (2-2) in Tacoma, Washington on December 6
th at 5:00 p.m.
The Beacons will now look ahead to non-nonconference opponent Saint Martin's University for a Friday evening tipoff in Monmouth, Ore. at 5:15 p.m.