LA GRANDE, Ore. – After fumbling a substantial lead in the opening period, the home team finally found their footing tonight against the Corban University Women's Basketball team, with Eastern Oregon University securing an 81-62 victory in the penultimate regular season game for both programs.
"Every person on the floor competed well for an entire forty minutes and played with a great level of intensity," Warriors' head coach Bill Pilgeram stated. "Rebounding and defense were significantly better than the last time playing EOU, which will make us a tough out no matter who we might play in the CCC tourney. A slow start put us in a hole early, but this team never stops fighting and doesn't quit!"
Despite a very sluggish start, the Warriors (8-19, 7-14) rebounded after a 21-4 disadvantage to start the contest with a 13-2 run over the final minutes of the first quarter and opening second period, closing the gap to 28-23 with just over six minutes remaining in the half. However, the Mountaineers (19-6, 15-6) rediscovered their offense over the backend of the second quarter to creep back into a double-digit lead of 43-29 at the halftime break.
Eastern Oregon was able to ride the consistent gameplay of their upperclassmen throughout the second half en route to an 81-62 win, cementing themselves as the No. 4-overall seed in the upcoming Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Tournament that begins next week. The Warriors are still in the hunt to clinch a playoff spot, as they need either a win tomorrow afternoon or a loss from Walla Walla University in their night cap at No. 25-ranked Oregon Tech to earn the eighth and final postseason bid.
The dynamic duo of Corban guards, senior Maddie Godwin and freshman Autumn Agnew, led the Warriors in scoring tonight with 20 points apiece, with Godwin hauling in three rebounds and a pair of steals along the way. Senior guard Kirsten Koehnke and junior forward Madison Hodnett scored six points each, while freshman guard Teayona Hoard brought down a team-high five rebounds.
EOU's forward Brie Holecek scored a game-high 21 points in 32 minutes of game-play and fellow forward Haley Robinett pitched in 14 points and a near double-double with eight boards. Guard Beverly Slater grew her program-record rebounding count with 13 more this evening against the Navy and Gold.
Corban women's basketball will play in their final regular season contest tomorrow afternoon in Caldwell, Idaho, where they'll battle The College of Idaho Yotes (9-18, 9-12) for one of the final remaining playoff spots at 3pm MT/2pm PT.
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