LA GRANDE, Ore. – The Corban University women's basketball team's 2016-17 season finished on Tuesday evening, as the No. 7-seeded Warriors fell to the No. 2 seeded Eastern Oregon University Mountaineers in the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Tournament, presented by U.S. Bank, 76-66.

"I am super proud of how hard our kids fought until the very end," said Corban head coach Michelle Skyles. "We played three ranked teams in four days, all on the road. It is pretty hard to come in and beat a team like EOU with a schedule like that."

EOU, a co-CCC regular-season champ, had already earned the CCC's first automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament via a coin flip on Sunday.

On Tuesday night, the Warriors held leads at varying points throughout the first quarter, but EOU surged forward to take a four-point lead into the second quarter. In what was a very defensive second quarter, however, the Warriors locked down and held the Mountaineers' high-powered offense to just 10 points while scoring 11 themselves to cut the deficit to just three points by the halftime intermission.

In the third quarter, Corban surged ahead again and held a lead midway through the third stanza, but EOU showed why it won the CCC Title by responding with a run of its own, taking an eight-point lead into the final quarter.

The Warriors once again tried to rally, but the Mountaineers proved too strong, both offensively and defensively, finishing off Corban for the 10-point win to advance to the CCC Semifinals. EOU will host Oregon Tech in the semifinal round of the CCC Tournament.

"They are very disciplined and tough," said Skyles of EOU. "But our girls came to play and we believed we could win. I'm hurting for the seniors, but also excited for the future."

Maci Benedict finished with a team-best 14 points on a 5-for-10 shooting effort with a pair of long-range shots made. Maddey Pflaumer capped off her Warrior career with a 12-point showing on a 3-for-9 shooting mark from the floor. Additionally, Jordan Rasberry put forth a solid showing with nine points, while Payton Wilcox totaled eight points for the Warriors.

For the Mountaineers, Maya Ay You tallied 19 points and 10 boards in the win, while Ashley Knight registered a 14-point performance.

EOU shot 46.7% for the game, while Corban shot 39.3% overall. EOU won the rebounding battle on the night as well, 41-30, while also forcing Corban into 19 turnovers.

Corban finishes the 2016-17 season with a 14-15 overall record and berth in a CCC Tournament Quarterfinal contest.

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