EUGENE, Ore. – Down five points at halftime, the Evergreen Geoducks shot 52.0% from the field in the second half to earn their first conference win of the year, defeating the Northwest Christian Beacons, 67-62, in a Cascade Conference women’s basketball game on Tuesday evening at Morse Event Center in Eugene, Ore.
The Geoducks (3-9, 1-2 CCC) scored first as freshman Sadee Jones (Belfair, Wash./North Mason HS) hit her first shot of the night but the Beacons (8-8, 0-3 CCC) answered right back as the two teams kept things close early. Northwest Christian pushed the lead to as many as seven before Jones hit a basket with six second left in the first half to cut the gap to five at halftime, 37-32.
In the second half, the Beacons nearly pushed the lead into double-digits just a few minutes in but the Geoducks quickly began to erase the deficit, tying it up on the first of two free throws by Danielle Swain (Rainier, Wash./Black Hills) and then taking the lead on the second of two. The lead exchanged sides of the scoreboard until about the five minute mark as Evergreen pushed the lead to six-points with 2:39 left to play as the Geoducks held on for the 67-62 win.
Evergreen was led by a career-game from Jones, who put up 18 points and 13 rebounds for her first collegiate double-double. Swain finished with 14 points and nine rebounds while junior Jessica Edge (Lake Stevens, Wash./Skagit Valley CC) also chalked up 14 in the win. The Geoducks went through a lot of glass cleaner on the night, outrebounding the Beacons, 51-31.
Northwest Christian was led by 16 points each from Katie Collins and Kelsey Atkins. Jess Anderson added 11 points in the loss. After shooting 52.2% in the first half, the Beacons shot just 24.1% from the field in the second half, making just seven-of-29 attempts.
The Geoducks will be back in action on Dec. 29 when they play host to ninth-ranked Eastern Oregon. Tip with the Mountaineers is set for 5:30 pm at CRC Gymnasium in Olympia, Wash.
