Lady Jackets Win Second-Straight over Western N.M. (Jan. 19, 2005)
Box Score

BILLINGS, MT – The Montana State-Billings women’s basketball team started the day by learning they were ranked ninth in the first NCAA regional poll of the year.  They finished the night with a hard fought 83-71 win over West Region foe Western New Mexico.  It was the Jackets’ (13-3) second win over the Mustangs (5-14) in as many nights.

Wednesday’s match up was in stark contrast to Tuesday’s 100-63 trouncing.  After being blown out just 24 hours earlier, the Mustangs put up a fight.  The Yellowjackets opened a 10 point lead seven and a half minutes into the game when Jessica Bratton’s (So., Casper, WY) jumper gave MSUB a 20-10 lead.  Michelle Lieber (So., Gillette, WY) put the Jackets up by 12 on an offensive put back on the next possession.

Western responded with a 10-4 run, cutting the Yellowjackets’ lead to six with 8:18 remaining in the opening half.  A Lisa Jellum (Jr., Gillette, WY) basket stopped the bleeding and MSU Billings finished the half with a 20-12 run, taking a 46-32 lead into the break.

Western New Mexico was unable to trim the deficit to less than 12 for the entire second half and MSU Billings led by as many as 21.  The Mustangs finished the game with a 17-9 run in the final five minutes after the outcome was decided.  The Yellowjacket bench again was able to contribute significant minutes in the win.

“It was a hard-fought victory tonight, but we will definitely take it,” said Yellowjacket coach Kevin Woodin.  “Western New Mexico gave a solid effort and we could never quite put them away.  WNMU shot the ball much better tonight from the perimeter and that made them very difficult to guard.  Their team quickness was very evident and we fouled too much.” 

The Yellowjackets countered the Mustangs’ perimeter play with a solid inside game.  The three post players—Robyn Milne, Tanya Petersen, and Michelle Lieber—combined to score 51 points on 22-of-30 shooting (73.3 percent) from the floor.  Petersen (Jr., Billings, MT) led all players, netting a career-high 26 points on 11-of-18.  She also grabbed eight rebounds.  Lieber added eight points and five boards in limited minutes.

Milne (Sr., Richey, MT) was a perfect 7-of-7 from the field and 3-of-3 from the free throw line for 17 points.  She pulled down five rebounds and blocked four shots.  The four blocked shots give her 230 for her career, one shy of the NCAA Division II career top 25.  Her next block will tie her with Jontell Johnson of Francis Marion for No. 25 on the all-time career list in DII.  Former Yellowjacket Jessie Henigman (1999-2003) is tied for fourteenth all time with 272 blocks.

“On the positive side, we were effective at getting the ball inside to our posts,” added Woodin.  “Tanya had an excellent all-around game on the offensive end.  Jennifer Skrifvars and Jenny Langford really did a nice job of feeding the posts.  I was proud of the way we competed and how we battled.  We are looking forward to Saturday night’s game at Central Washington.  They are a quality opponent and we must be ready to play.”

The Jacket guards were effective in feeding the posts on a lukewarm shooting night from 3-point range.  MSU Billings was a combined 4-of-16 from beyond the arc, but the Yellowjacket guards handed out 20 assists.  Skrifvars (So., Brea, CA) dished out a career-high six assists in 15 minutes of action. 

Langford (Jr., Reedpoint, MT) added five assists, and Jellum handed out four.  It was another solid outing from Jellum, who also had 12 points and six boards.  Shannon Harvey (So., Billings, MT) added eight points before fouling out.  She was 2-of-3 from 3-point range.

The Yellowjackets take to the road for a tough West Region match up on Saturday at Central Washington.  The Wildcats are 10-4 overall, 5-1 at home, and looking to crack into the regional poll.