OLYMPIA, Wash. -- The Evergreen State College held a 38-33 lead in the third quarter, but Eastern Oregon University ended the game with a 25-10 run to defeat the Geoducks 58-48 at the Costantino Recreation Center on Friday, Jan. 10. Evergreen was led by
Jalyn Sackrider (Sr., F/C) with 19 points, nine rebounds, and five blocked shots. Syndey VanNess (Sr., G/F) added 13 points, seven rebounds, and three steals for the Geoducks.
With the win, Eastern Oregon improved to 9-4 on the season, 5-3 in the Cascade Collegiate Conference. The Geoducks fell to 1-9 overall and to 1-7 in the CCC.
Following Sackrider and VanNess on the TESC scoring chart was
Mikail Montez (Sr., F/C). Montez tallied nine points to go with five boards, four assists, and two steals.
Allison DeBerry (Sr., G) provided Evergreen with a team-high six assists as well as two steals.
Kelsie Siegner paced the Mountaineers with 23 points and nine rebounds. She was 4 for 8 on 3-point shots. Maggie Smith and Mya Alvarado each finished with nine points for EOU. Smith also registered six boards. Brie Holecek supplied the Mountaineers with seven points and eight rebounds.
Evergreen built an 11-4 lead with 4:24 left in the first quarter following a pair of free throws by Sackrider. The run began with a layup by Sackrider for a 2-1 lead and then VanNess hit a 3-pointer. Sackrider earned the next six points by the Geoducks for eight points during the run. TESC held an 11-10 advantage at the end of the quarter after Alvarado sank a 3-point shot with 11 seconds to go.
VanNess opened the second quarter with a 3-point basket and hit a 3-pointer at the 5:00 mark as Evergreen grabbed a 19-13 edge. The Mountaineers eventually tied the score 21-21 on a 3-pointer by Smith. The Geoducks scored the next four points on a jumper by Montez and a layup by Sackrider. Evergreen owned a 27-25 lead at halftime.
A 3-pointer by Siegner just 28 seconds into the third quarter gave EOU a 28-27 margin and the lead changed hands three more times in the first two minutes. A 3-pointer by Montez created the third lead change, starting a 9-5 run by the Geoducks for a 38-33 advantage with 3:31 remaining in the quarter.
The Mountaineers outscored Evergreen 10-1 to end the period for a 43-39 lead. Eastern Oregon opened the final quarter with a 6-0 run to increase the margin to 49-49 after Brinley Hagemeier completed a traditional 3-point play with 8:16 on the clock.
Evergreen pulled within 49-44 with 4:47 to play on a layup by Sackrider but couldn't get closer. EOU's lead was 54-48 when DeBerry registered a steal, but her shot was blocked by Alvarado. The Mountaineers added a 3-pointer by Alvarado with 38 seconds to go and a free throw by Smith with 10 seconds left.
Eastern Oregon hit 11 of 31 three-pointers 35.5%, while the Geoducks made 4 of 17 shots from long range (23.5%). The Mountaineers gained a 42-33 rebounding edge.
The Geoducks will host College of Idaho on Saturday, Jan. 11 at the CRC. Game time is set for 3 p.m. PDT.
