Box Score

NAMPA, Idaho (Nov. 28) -- Sophomore Sophie Russell (Olympia/River Ridge HS) scored 17 points and earned all-tournament team honors, but the Central Washington women's basketball team fell to 0-4 on the season with a 69-59 loss to Cal State Stanislaus on Saturday afternoon at the NNU Thanksgiving Classic.

The Wildcats lost despite Russell's third double-digit scoring performance in four contests this season, which on Saturday included 5 of 8 field-goal shooting and 7 of 10 at the free throw line. She finished the tournament with 30 points in two games.

Central led for most of the first 13 minutes of the game amidst five first-half ties, but after taking its largest lead of four points with 9:42 to go in the opening stanza, Cal State Stanislaus (1-1) went on scored the next 11 points over a five-minute stretch to take the lead, and the Warriors extended their lead to double digits with 2:24 left before halftime. Central went into the locker room with a eight-point deficit.

The Wildcats scored the first eight points of the second half to tie the game, as senior Shaina Afoa (Anchorage, Alaska/Dimond HS) and junior Brittany Duerr (Bellevue/Newport HS) each made a pair of field goals in the first three minutes as Central made four of its first five shots in the second half. However, after a Russell lay-up forced the game's eighth tie, CSU Stanislaus scored 12 of the next 14 points and did not trail again. The Warriors later used a 13-1 scoring run to reach their largest lead of the game at 67-50 with 3:13 left. Central finished the game on a 9-2 run but was unable to overcome the 17-point deficit late in the second half.

Russell had 12 of her 17 points in the second half, while senior Sara Bergner (Bellingham) also finished in double figures with a season-high 10 points. Afoa had six points and a team-high seven rebounds as Central finished with a 35-30 rebounding advantage over CSU Stanislaus.

The Warriors were led by Katie Busi with a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds, while Christin Gowan had 16 points and eight assists and Jeanette Rowe added 12 points.

Central will now open up a three-game home stand, beginning with its home opener next Saturday (Dec. 5) against Academy of Art University at Nicholson Pavilion at 7 p.m. The Wildcats will also face Montana Tech (Dec. 10) and Cal State East Bay (Dec. 12) before returning to the road in mid-December.