Yellowjackets Snap Five-Game Skid, 77-63

Box Score

MONMOUTH, Ore. – The Montana State Billings women’s basketball team snapped a five-game losing skid Saturday afternoon with a 77-63 victory at Western Oregon.  Alira Carpenter and Jetton Meadors led the way for the Yellowjackets with 18 points each.  Jen Smith also had a double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds for MSUB.

“Our effort and focus was there today and we really deserved this win and I am really proud of this team,” assistant coach Natalie Visger said.  “We shot really well from the 3-point line today and we also rebounded the heck out of the ball and out-rebounded them by nine, including 16 offensive rebounds which is a big deal for us.” 

The teams opened the game trading buckets as neither squad could garner much of an advantage.  WOU (8-14, 3-8) held a 13-12 lead when MSUB went on a 10-2 run followed by a 25-10 run for the rest of the half to take a 34-23 lead into the locker room.

The Yellowjackets (12-10, 4-7) shot 39 percent from the field in the first half and were 3 of 9 from downtown.  MSUB was 5 of 8 from the charity stripe and held a 21-15 lead in rebounds.  Kayla Ryan had 13 first half points to lead all-scores, while the conference’s leading scorer Alira Carpenter had nine. 

The Wolves shot just 30 percent in the opening stanza and were just 1 of 7 from deep and 10 of 12 from the free throw line.  Erika Wilson and Whitney Chase led WOU with seven points each.  MSUB shutdown the GNAC’s second leading scorer in Katie Torland for no points in the half.  Torland entered the game averaging 17.3 points per game, while Carpenter was at a 22.8 clip.

The Yellowjackets built the lead to 15 points twice in the first 10 minutes of the second half capped by a 3-pointer from Smith.  MSUB kept WOU at bay for much of the half, but the Wolves went on a bit of a run (13-7) to cut the deficit to six points at 56-50 with 7:17 left. 

The Wolves stayed within 7-10 points through the next few minutes and had the deficit at seven with 3:45 left on a big 3-pointer from Sara Zahler, but Smith had the answer again with another triple to put the Yellowjackets back up double figures for good moments later.

For the game, MSUB shot 40 percent on 22 of 55 from the field.  The Yellowjackets were deadly from downtown, going 9 of 17 and were 24 of 31 from the charity stripe.  Ryan finished the game with 17 points, while Meadors added seven assists.

Carpenter’s 18 points puts her at 1,896 career points. She needs just 104 points to break the 2,000 mark.

WOU shot much better in the second half, but only was 39.2 percent for the game on 20 of 51.  The Wolves were led by 15 points from Chase.  Torland had 11 second half points and missed a double-double by one rebound.  The Wolves were 7 of 21 from deep and 16 of 19 from the line.

One of the biggest differences in the game was rebounding as the Yellowjackets won the battle of the boards 39-30 and 16-9 on the offensive end.

The Yellowjackets return home for Think Pink night Wednesday against Western Washington at 7 p.m., benefiting the Eva Project.  Fans are encouraged to wear pink to the game.