Jackets Fall in Final Minutes

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BILLINGS, Mont. –  Western Oregon came from behind to nip Montana State Billings 68-64, Saturday afternoon.  MSUB hits the road for a four game trip, Thursday, Jan. 22, against Central Washington.  The game is scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m.

Western Oregon came out on a mission.  Trailing 4-2 with 18:11 to go, the Wolves went on a tear.  Sara Zahler hit a triple followed by buckets from Whitney Chase and Katie Torland.

That made it 9-4, Wolves at the 16:11 mark.  Montana State Billings came stinging back.  Jen Smith hit an 18-footer and then drained a triple.

“Western Oregon was very determined from the start,” said head coach Kevin Woodin.  “Coach Bruce had a great game plan and his players executed it.”

All of a sudden, the game was knotted up at nine each.  At the 11:47 mark, Kalli Stanhope swished a three-pointer.  The Yellowjackets had their biggest lead at four, 17-13.

Western Oregon got a lay-up from Whitney Chase with eleven minutes left.  One minute later, Jessica Goss popped in an NBA triple.  WOU led 18-17 with 9:57 to go.

For the next six minutes, the teams went back-and-forth.  Sara Zahler knocked in a triple to make it 26-23 with 4:28 left.  Kayla Ryan then penetrated the paint and scored.  Callie Kautzmann hit a free throw with 3:47 to go.

That made it 26-26, the sixth tie of the game.  The Wolves then took over, finishing the half on a 9-2 run.  That gave WOU a 35-28 lead at half.

Western Oregon shot 53.6% from the floor while holding MSUB to 40% from the floor and 27.3% from behind the arc.  Chase had eight points to lead the Wolves.  Smith had 13 points and five rebounds for the Jackets.

“We were fortunate that Jen was able to play today,” said coach Woodin.  “Without, I’m not sure how many points we would have been behind.  I thought Jetton Meadors stepped up again for us.”

Western Oregon got the first score of the second half.  Chase hit a 17-footer just 32 seconds into the second stanza.  Montana State Billings decided they weren’t ready to cry uncle.

Meadors nailed back-to-back trifectas.  Torland hit a jumper but MSUB responded.  Alira Carpenter hit a fadeaway 13-footer to close to three.

Carpenter then drove the lane and was hit hard.  She got her shot to drop and hit the free throw.  That tied the contest at 39-39 at the 16:02 mark.  It also ended an 11-2 run by the Jackets.

“I felt we improved on both ends in the second half,” said coach Woodin.  “I liked the offensive run we started the half on.  It got us back in the game.”

The Wolves responded with six straight points.  Danielle Albus had a bucket, Sammy Nordstrom hit a free throw and Torland nailed a triple.  That made it 45-39 with 11:35 to go.

Montana State Billings came back with 10-2 run of its own.  Stanhope knocked down a triple and Smith had a pair of free throws.

Carpenter swished two charity tosses and ripped off a three-point bomb.  That put the Yellowjackets up by two, 49-47 with 9:24 to go.

The Wolves came back with seven straight points.  Zahler’s three-pointer made it 54-49 with eight minutes to go.  The rollercoaster decided to go on another ride.

The Yellowjackets came riding back with a 10-2 run.  Smith hit a twisting layup to put MSUB up, 57-56.  Meadors hit a pair of free throws to make it 59-56 with 4:54 to go.

WOU responded with buckets from Nordstrom and Albus.  That made it 60-59 with 4:08 to go.  After that, the Wolves traded buckets with MSUB to hold on for the win.

“We had opportunities in the last minute,” said coach Woodin.  “We just weren’t able to get a few defensive rebounds.  I give a lot of credit to Western Oregon.  They deserved to win.

For Montana State Billings (2-2 GNAC, 10-5), Smith had 20 points and two steals, Carpenter had 16 points and was 7-of-7 from the line and Meadros had 12 points and six assists.

For Western Oregon (2-2 GNAC, 7-8), Torland had 21 points, Albus had 14 points and five assists and Zahler had 11 points.