Women's Basketball | 2/20/2014 8:43:00 PM

Box Score
POSTGAME QUOTES

MONMOUTH, Ore. – The No. 25 Montana State University Billings' women's basketball team pulled away from Western Oregon University Thursday, 77-67.

The top-ranked team in the NCAA Div. II West Region, MSU Billings (21-5, 13-2 Great Northwest Athletic Conference), needed all 40 minutes to escape with the victory. MSUB is one win away from clinching the top spot in the GNAC Championships. After Thursday's action, four schools have qualified for the six-team postseason tournament.

The Yellowjackets won their 11th straight game behind three double-digit scoring efforts. Bobbi Knudsen led MSUB with 18 points. The senior made six of her 10 attempts from the field, including 4-of-6 from behind-the-arc, and dished out a game-high six assists. Quinn Peoples made five three-pointers and finished with 16 points. Alisha Breen scored 11. Janiel Olson grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.

After it shot 48 percent from the field in the first half, Montana State Billings finished the game at 43 percent. The Yellowjackets made 12 of their 30 three-point attempts and 19-of-25 from the free throw line. MSUB had a 41-35 edge in rebounds and 29-9 advantage in points off of the bench.

The 24th matchup between the programs featured three ties and six lead changes. MSU Billings won for the 19th time in the series behind a key 19-5 run to close the first half. The Wolves got out to a fast start leading 11-5 early in the contest. A Dana Goularte free throw with 8:46 remaining in the opening half gave WOU a 21-20 advantage. The 19-5 run followed and the Yellowjackets led 39-28 at halftime.

Western Oregon closed within six points just into the second half, but MSUB built its lead back to double digits. The Yellowjackets had their largest lead, 66-51, after a Knudsen three-pointer with 6:46 remaining in regulation. The Wolves cut into the margin over a five-minute span and trailed by only five with 1:43 left in the game. But, WOU would come no closer, and Montana State Billings closed the victory by scoring seven of the final nine points.

Goularte scored 13 of her game-high 19 points in the second half. The junior went 5-of-11 from the field and 9-of-11 from the free throw line. Chantel Divilbiss added 14 points, while fellow senior Melissa Fowler chipped in 12. Fowler, Goularte, and Jordan Mottershaw all had seven rebounds. Elise Miller made five steals and threw three assists.

The Wolves (6-17, 3-12 GNAC) committed a conference season-low 12 turnovers, while MSUB had 18. Western Oregon outscored the Yellowjackets, 28-20, in the paint, and 17-10 in second-chance points. WOU shot 37 percent from the field, 4-of-15 from three-point range, and a season-best 13-of-15 from the free throw line.

The second meeting between the teams was vastly different than the first meeting. MSUB cruised to a 22-point victory at home over the Wolves less than a month ago.

Western Oregon welcomes the fourth-ranked team in the region, Seattle Pacific, Saturday. The Falcons (16-7, 9-6) won at Saint Martin's Thursday. SPU beat the Wolves in the first meeting this season in Seattle, 72-56. Divilbiss and Fowler will be playing their final games inside the New P.E. Building on Senior Day. The final home women's basketball game of the season at WOU begins at 2 p.m. Live video and stats will be available on WOUWolves.com.

Montana State Billings vs Western Oregon
02/20/14 7 p.m. at Monmouth, OR (New P.E. Building)
At Monmouth, OR (New P.E. Building)
MONTANA STATE BILLINGS 77, WESTERN OREGON 67
MONTANA STATE BILLINGS (21-5, 13-2 GNAC)
Knudsen,Bobbi 6-10 2-2 18; Peoples,Quinn 5-11 1-2 16; Breen,Alisha 3-6 4-6
11; Banis,Chelsea 3-4 2-3 8; Olson,Janiel 1-7 6-8 8; Goggins,Kayleen 2-7 4-4
8; Hanser,Austin 2-6 0-0 6; Kumm,Brandy 1-1 0-0 2; Capouch,Tenika 0-1 0-0 0.
Totals 23-53 19-25 77.
WESTERN OREGON (6-17, 3-12 GNAC)
Goularte,Dana 5-11 9-11 19; Divilbiss,Chantel 5-12 2-2 14; Fowler,Melissa
6-13 0-0 12; Henry,Kelsey 3-10 2-2 8; Mottershaw,Jordan 3-12 0-0 7;
Miller,Elise 2-6 0-0 5; Reade,Amber 1-2 0-0 2; Nicklason,Leah 0-0 0-0 0;
Titus,Angie 0-0 0-0 0; Steiger,Jackie 0-0 0-0 0; Goddard,Katie 0-1 0-0 0.
Totals 25-67 13-15 67.
Montana State Billings........   39   38  -   77
Western Oregon................   28   39  -   67
3-point goals--Montana State Billings 12-30 (Peoples,Quinn 5-10;
Knudsen,Bobbi 4-6; Hanser,Austin 2-6; Breen,Alisha 1-1; Goggins,Kayleen 0-2;
Olson,Janiel 0-5), Western Oregon 4-15 (Divilbiss,Chantel 2-4; Miller,Elise
1-4; Mottershaw,Jordan 1-2; Goddard,Katie 0-1; Henry,Kelsey 0-2;
Fowler,Melissa 0-1; Goularte,Dana 0-1). Fouled out--Montana State
Billings-None, Western Oregon-Divilbiss,Chantel. Rebounds--Montana State
Billings 41 (Olson,Janiel 11), Western Oregon 35 (Goularte,Dana 7;
Fowler,Melissa 7; Mottershaw,Jordan 7). Assists--Montana State Billings 13
(Knudsen,Bobbi 6), Western Oregon 7 (Miller,Elise 3). Total fouls--Montana
State Billings 14, Western Oregon 21. Technical fouls--Montana State
Billings-None, Western Oregon-None. A-303
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