Hansen and Company Hold Off Wolves on Senior Day, 69-65

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BILLINGS, Mont. – Senior Rachel Hansen had nine points and a pair of assists in her final home game in a Montana State Billings uniform, as the Yellowjackets defeated visiting Western Oregon 69-65 Saturday afternoon at Alterowitz Gymnasium. The win for the Yellowjackets snapped a five game losing skid, the longest of the season, and helped MSUB better their record to 11-14 on the season and 4-10 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.

“It was a nice win for us tonight,” said Head Coach Kevin Woodin. “I thought we put together two solid halves for the first time in a while. We got a lot of good minutes from our bench tonight, which we needed due to foul trouble.  Sarah (McNamee) gave us some needed offensive sparks and I thought Melissa Porter worked hard on the glass. Senior Rachel Hansen also played well for us.  She made some critical shots and free throws for us and provided great leadership. And defensively, we worked very hard tonight.  I thought Callie Kautzmann and her teammates were effective in guarding Katie Torland.”

The Yellowjackets had three players in double figures, led by junior guard Sarah McNamee, who scored a team-high 18 points, going 6-of-9 from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Kalli Stanhope registered 17 points with four rebounds and three assists in 36 minutes of work, while Kautzmann chipped in 13 points and five boards.

As a team, MSUB shot a season-high 52.3 percent from the field, including shooting 63.2 percent in the second half. The Jackets were had a hot hand most of the night, knocking down 6-of-13 from long distance and hitting 17 of their 18 free throws.

The Yellowjackets grabbed 33 balls off the glass and forced 11 turnovers, converting those turnovers into 11 points. MSUB scored 22 points in the paint and got 18 from the bench.

MSUB started the game by building a seven point lead over the first five and a half minutes, 15-8, when Stanhope knocked down one of her three triples on the night.

The Wolves battled back however, going on an 8-0 run to take a one point advantage, 16-15, at the ten minute mark when Lorrie Clifford hit a jumper from the right side. WOU built a five point lead at the 5:19 mark when Meaghan White sunk a pair of free throws after being fouled by Ashley Reed going to the hole.

The Yellowjackets regained the lead at the 2:25 mark when Stanhope hit another jumper, this time from the top of the lane. McNamee gave MSUB a three point lead heading into the locker room when she connected on a layup from Mandy Jacobs under the basket.

Leading 34-31 at halftime, the Yellowjackets looked poised to not let the game slip away, opening up the first ten minutes with an 18-11 run to push their lead to ten, 52-42. Three minutes later, Hansen gave the Jackets their largest lead of the game at 14 when she sank a pair of freebies to give MSUB a 59-45 lead.

Western Oregon attempted to claw their way back in the game late, using a three from Clifford and a pair of free throws to get back within eight at 69-61. Another late three from Clifford got the Wolves back to within five, but that was as close as they would get.

The Wolves dropped to 11-18 on the season and 6-9 in league play. WOU was led by Katie Torland and Hannah Whitsett who scored 11 points apiece in the loss. Torland had a team-high eight rebounds, while three other players scored eight points each.

Western Oregon shot 31.7 percent from the floor and was 5-of-14 from behind the line and shot 67.9 percent from the free throw line. The Wolves forced 23 Yellowjacket turnovers and scored 21 points off the mistakes.