PORTLAND, Ore. – Junior Brittany Gray (Bainbridge Island, Wash./Bainbridge HS/Skagit Valley CC) put up her fifth double-double of the season with 27 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Evergreen Geoducks past the Concordia Cavaliers, 79-71, in a Cascade Conference women’s basketball game on Friday night at Cavalier Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

The teams established early that it would be a tight one throughout as the first-half featured 10 lead changes before the Geoducks took a two-point lead into the break at 43-41.  It was the Concordia bench keeping the Cavaliers competitive in the first half, posting 15 points off the pine compared with just four for the Geoduck substitutes.

The Cavaliers went on a 10-2 run to open the second half that gave CU a six-point lead less than three minutes into the period but the Geoducks roared back with a 9-0 run of their own to retake the lead with 14:19 left to play.  Evergreen continued to push the pace and a three-pointer by Jessica Denmon (Oak Harbor, Wash./Oak Harbor HS/Skagit Valley CC) put the green and white up by double-digits with 4:15 left to play.  CU tried to put together a comeback but the Geoducks held tough, pulling out the 79-71 conference win.

Evergreen was led by the 27 points and 11 rebounds from Gray, who also added three assists and just one turnover in 34 minutes played.  Sammi Clark (Monroe, Wash./Monroe HS/Edmonds CC) added 14 points and five assists while Sadee Jones (Belfair, Wash./North Mason HS) added 11 points in the win.  Denmon finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds to earn the double-double.

Concordia was led by 18 points from Lexi Campbell and 16 points from Kelly Huey.  Briannah Smith came off the bench to add 14 points in the loss.  The Cavaliers were outworked on the boards, 46-34.

The Geoducks will look to make it two in a row on Saturday night as they remain in the Rose City to take on Warner Pacific.  Tip with the Knights is set for 5:30 p.m. at C.C. Perry Gymnasium in Portland.

Box Score

OLYMPIA, Wash. – Putting up 17 points in the second overtime, the 20th-ranked Oregon Tech Lady Owls survived an upset bid at the hands of the Evergreen Geoducks, picking up a 93-80 win in a Cascade Conference women’s basketball game on Saturday night at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

The visiting Owls (17-4, 5-3 CCC) controlled the pace early as they led the Geoducks (6-8, 2-5 CCC) by double-digits with just under five minutes left to play in the first half.  Evergreen managed to close the gap slighting but Oregon Tech maintained the lead at halftime, 37-29.

Evergreen came out strong in the second half, pulling within one on a free throw by Randi Boseman (New Orleans, La./Newport (Wash.) HS) with 14:27 left to play.  Oregon Tech held on to the lead for much of the period but the Geoducks took it over with 1:22 left to go in regulation as Sammi Clark (Monroe, Wash./Monroe HS/Edmonds CC) hit a three-pointer that gave Evergreen the 68-66 win.

After OIT tied the score up on a layup by Karly Leveque with 36 seconds left, Boseman was fouled as she made a layup with nine seconds left that put Evergreen up by two points but the free throw rimmed out and Leveque hit a jumper with two seconds left to tie the game and force overtime.

Neither team gained much of an advantage in the first overtime as the teams were still tied after five extra minutes. In the final overtime, the Owls came out strong and the Geoducks couldn’t keep up as Oregon Tech outscored Evergreen, 17-4, in the final five minutes to earn the 93-80 win.

Evergreen was led by 24 points from Clark.  Brittany Gray (Bainbridge Island, Wash./Bainbridge HS/Skagit Valley CC) added 19 points and 13 rebounds to earn the double-double while Jessica Denmon (Oak Harbor, Wash./Oak Harbor HS/Skagit Valley CC) finished with 10 points.

Oregon Tech was led by a game-high 25 points from Karissa Dixon.  Leveque came off the bench to add 15 points while Tess Armstrong finished with 14 points in the win.  Maria Ramirez added 11 points to round out the Lady Owls in double-digit scoring.

The Geoducks hit the road next weekend, traveling to Portland on Friday to take on Concordia.  Tip with the Cavaliers is set for 5:30 p.m.

Box Score

OLYMPIA, Wash. – The Geoducks put up one of their top offensive halves of the year but it wasn’t enough to overcome an early drought as Evergreen fell to the Southern Oregon Raiders, 86-72, in a Cascade Conference women’s basketball game on Friday night at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

Southern Oregon (15-4, 4-3 CCC) came out strong, building an early lead as the Geoducks (6-7, 2-4 CCC) found themselves trailing early.  The Raiders pushed the lead to 20 points and 35-15 with 2:52 to go in the first half as SOU took a 39-22 lead into the break.

The Raiders kept the big lead early in the second half but the Geoducks began to chip away, pulling back with 10 points midway through the half and then getting back within single digits with 3:40 left to go but it was too much for Evergreen to overcome as Southern Oregon collected the 86-72 win.

Evergreen was led by 16 points from Sammi Clark (Monroe, Wash./Monroe HS/Edmonds CC).  Jessica Denmon (Oak Harbor, Wash./Oak Harbor HS/Skagit Valley CC) added 15 points while Brittany Gray (Bainbridge Island, Wash./Bainbridge HS/Skagit Valley CC) chipped in 12 points.  Sadee Jones (Belfair, Wash./North Mason HS) rounded out the Geoducks in double-digits with 10 points on the night.

SOU was led by 17 points and 15 rebounds from Allison Gida.  Kristen Schoenherr added 16 points while Bree Park added 15 points, all from behind the arc, off the bench.  Autumn Durand rounded out the SOU double-digit scorers with 12 points on the night.

The Geoducks will be back in action on Saturday when they play host to Oregon Tech.  Tip with the Lady Owls is set for 5:30 p.m. at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

Box Score

KIRKLAND, Wash. – A strong start in the second half helped the Evergreen Geoducks open up 2014 victorious, earning a 69-61 win over the Northwest Eagles on Saturday night at NU Pavilion in Kirkland, Wash.

Defense was the name of the game early as the two teams stayed with each other through the first part of the first half, as Northwest held a one-point lead, 13-12, at the first media timeout.  The teams traded leads for the remainder of the period, with NU building a lead as large as five at one point but the Geoducks cut the gap to three points at the break, 33-30.

In the second half, Evergreen came out strong, using a 12-3 run to force NU to take two timeouts in the first four minutes as the Geoducks built their biggest lead of the night.  The Geoduck lead hit double-digits on a three-pointer by Sammi Clark (Monroe, Wash./Monroe HS/Edmonds CC) with 14:30 left to put Evergreen up 47-36.

Northwest mounted a comeback, pulling back within two points with 11:17 to play at 47-45 and tying it up less than a minute later. After a brief NU lead, the Geoducks evened up again as the two squads sat tied at 50 apiece at the eight-minute media timeout.   Evergreen took back the lead on a pair of made free throws by freshman Justina Laney (Tacoma, Wash./Wilson HS) with 7:41 to play the Geoducks wouldn’t trail the rest of the way, holding on for the 69-61 win.

Evergreen was led by 17 points each from Clark and Sadee Jones (Belfair, Wash./North Mason HS).  Brittany Gray (Bainbridge Island, Wash./Bainbridge HS/Skagit Valley CC) added 12 points while Jessica Denmon (Oak Harbor, Wash./Oak Harbor HS/Skagit Valley CC) added 10 points in the win.  The Geoducks forced NU to turn the ball over 27 times on the night, compared with just 17 for Evergreen.

The Eagles were led by 16 points from Jordan Asher. Sanda Milovic finished with 15 points, 12 of which came in the opening half.  Northwest shot 38.5% on the night, making 20-of-52 attempts on the game.

The Geoducks make their first home appearance of the new year on Friday when they play host to Southern Oregon.  Tip with the Raiders is set for 5:30 p.m. at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.

Box Score

EUGENE, Ore. – Looking to end 2013 on a high note, the Evergreen Geoducks won their first conference game of the season in convincing fashion, crushing the Northwest Christian Beacons, 70-45, in a Cascade Conference women’s basketball game on Saturday night at Morse Event Center in Eugene, Ore.

The Geoducks and the Beacons traded baskets early as both teams had the opportunity to take control.  Evergreen finally seized the opportunity, using an 11-2 run to go ahead by double-digits and the Geoducks kept rolling, heading into the break up by 21 points at 36-15.

Evergreen continued to blow past NCU in the second half as the lead ballooned to 30 on a three-pointer by Jessica Denmon (Oak Harbor, Wash./Oak Harbor HS/Skagit Valley CC) with 12:18 left to play.  The Geoducks’ biggest lead was on another Denmon basket with 9:10 that put Evergreen up by 38 points at 61-23.  NCU mounted a slight comeback but the Evergreen lead was simply too big to overcome as the Geoducks earned the 70-43 win.

Evergreen was led by 14 points from Sadee Jones (Belfair, Wash./North Mason HS).  Senior Sammi Clark (Monroe, Wash./Monroe HS/Edmonds CC) added 13 points in the win while Denmon finished with 10 points.  The Geoducks shot 43.1% from the field, sinking 22 of 51 attempts but it was at the charity stripe that Evergreen did the most damage, making 20 of 31 attempts from the free throw line.

Northwest Christian was led by 15 points from Andrea Gloss. Hannah Frederick added 11 points in the loss.  The Beacons shot just 34.9% on the night, making 15 of 43 attempts.  NCU also turned the ball over 23 times, leading directly to 25 Evergreen points.

The Geoducks will take a break for the holidays before returning to action on Jan. 4 at in-state rival Northwest.  Tip with the Eagles is set for 5:30 p.m. at NU Pavilion in Kirkland, Wash.

Box Score