Eastern Washington Defeats WSU in WNIT For First Postseason Win in School History; Tisha Phillips (Nez Perce) Scores 4 for Eagles

Pullman, Wash – With a combination of powerhouse defense and stellar offense, the Eastern Washington University women’s basketball defeated Washington State on Wednesday, Mar. 18, 67-65, in the opening round of the WNIT for the first postseason win in school history.

Won-Lost Record
Eastern keeps its 2014-15 season alive, improving its record to 21-11, tying the record for the most wins in the history of the program, while WSU concludes its season at a mark of 17-15.

What It Means
The victory over the Cougars means that the Eagles will continue to play in 2015 and in this year’s WNIT. EWU will face the winner of Pacific and Sacramento State, who play on Thursday, Mar. 19. The game will be played at a date and time yet to be decided.

Tonight’s win is Eastern’s first win in the WNIT in three total tries under head coach Wendy Schuller’s tenure. The Eagles previous appearances in the yearly tournament took place in both the 2010 and 2013 seasons.

Turning Point
With the Eagles down five points with just over four minutes left to play, senior Lexie Nelson was able to drain a three to narrow the Cougars’ lead to just two points. Seconds later, the Eastern defense was able to force a turnover, which Nelson promptly converted into a layup, tying the game, 58-58.

The five-point surge ignited a series of buckets between both teams, creating six different lead changes in the final minutes of the game. After trading punch for punch, the game remained tied at 65-65 with 29 seconds left.

With possession of the ball for the final play game, the Eagles had one chance to run one final play. While running an isolation play, sophomore Jade Redmond was able to drive to the basket to hit the game-winning lay up, giving Eastern the 67-65 win.

Top Performers
Three Eagle players finished their performances in double figures in tonight’s game with Nelson leading EWU with 19 points, while Redmon notched 15 points and junior Hayley Hodgins tallied 12 points.

Senior Melissa Williams brought down a total of 11 boards, while scoring nine points, one shy from recording yet another double-double.

Defensively, Redmon was able to hold one of Washington State’s best players in Tia Presley to only 11 total points. As a team, Eastern held WSU to just 38 percent from the field.

Tisha Phillips (Nez Perce Tribe) added 4 points in 11 minutes of play for the Eastern Washington.

Key Statistics
The night featured an all-around solid performance for the Eagles, both defensively and offensively. While holding the Cougars to a sub 40 shooting percentage, EWU also almost eliminated Washington State’s three-point shot, stifling them to a percentage of 11.8 from beyond the arc.

The Eagles also forced a total of 17 turnovers on the night.

Eastern outshot WSU on the night, finishing at a mark of 44.8 percent, while making 7-of-18 three-pointers. Additionally, EWU made 72 percent of its free throws on the night.

256

NDNSPORTS STAFF