by KIRKLAND, Wash. – Trailing in the middle quarters of the game, No. 4 Southern Oregon outscored Northwest U, 27-14, in the final quarter for a come-from-behind 79-71 CCC victory tonight in the NU Pavilion. NU held a 39-34 lead at halftime.
After taking a 25-17 lead in the first quarter, Southern Oregon would see their lead disappear late in the second quarter as Northwest would chip away the Raider lead. It would be NU outscoring the No. 4 Raiders 22-9 in the second quarter as they would tie the game 34-34 on a Jackie Bento jumper with 1:05 left in the second quarter. Two steals in a row in the final 33 seconds would lead to NU baskets giving them a 39-34 lead at the break.
SOU would come back to tie the game at 46-all at the 5:32 mark of the third quarter, but Mariah Stacona (Warm Springs Tribe) would put NU back in the lead with her 3-pointer. The Eagles would outscore SOU 8-4 the remainder of the quarter to lead 57-52 going into the final period.
Emily Henderson would give Northwest U their largest lead, 62-53, with 8:59 left in the game, but Southern Oregon would show why they are undefeated in league play as they would slowly cut into the NU lead. Sydney Mullings would make it a two point 64-62 game with 4:51 on the clock and Toria Bradford’s driving lay-up would tie the game at 64-64 at the 4:36 mark. After a second tie at 66-66, SOU would regain the lead for good on Autumn Durand’s trey and another Mullings basket would give the Raiders a 71-66 lead as they would hit 6 of 6 free throws down the stretch to pull out the victory.
Mariah Stacona led Northwest U (10-12, 5-7 CCC) with 20 points hitting 6 of 11 from the 3-point line. Paige Burson scored 13 points and grabbed 9 rebounds while teammate Charmaine Bradford also scored 13 for the Eagles. NU held a 42-37 rebounding margin over the Raiders.
Sydney Mullings hit 10 of her 16 shots for 20 points to go with 9 rebounds to lead Southern Oregon (18-1, 11-0 CCC). Autumn Durand registered a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Raiders. Toria Bradford contributed 15 points for the Raiders who shot 43 per cent for the game.
Said NU head coach, Ken Crawford, “It was an exciting game for everyone involved. We need to continue to learn how to close out games and play the full 40 minutes, especially against veteran teams like Southern. A quick turnaround and it’s another opportunity tomorrow night versus Oregon Tech.”
