NAMPA, Idaho – Central Washington Wildcat Women's Basketball got the first day of the Fairfield Inn Tournament hosted by Northwest Nazarene started Friday afternoon again in-region foe Westminster College (Utah). The Wildcats battled all 40 minutes but late surges by the Griffins lifted them to a 70-60 win over CWU.
 
The two teams were even matched in shooting for much of the afternoon, but the Griffins (3-0) converted 12 CWU (1-2) turnovers to 13 points, while winning the points in the paint battle 32-24. The Griffins bench also proved to be more productive in the win with a 14-2 edge over the Wildcats.
 
The Crimson and Black jumped out to a quick lead 8-4 to start the game. Alexis Pana hit an in the paint jumper and followed it up with a long triple to give CWU a 5-2 edge. Westminster got within one on the next possession before Brianna Phiakhamngon answered with a three of her own to put CWU up four.
 
The Griffins kept things close as the opening frame progressed and grabbed their first lead at the 5:41 mark, 12-10, when Hunter Kerbs hit a three-point shot. Taylor Shaw responded for the Wildcats two possessions later to knot the contest at 12-all.
 
With just over 4:30 to play, Westminster got another three ball, this time from Kaylee Carlsen to jump up 15-13. Kaelie Flores matched for CWU to tie the game at 15-15. The Griffins then found a rhythm on offense and closed out the first with a 10-2 run to take a 27-17 lead into the second quarter.
 
Quarter No. 2 continued to play in the Griffins favor in the early go round. The Wildcats cut into the double figure lead, but the Griffins continued to have an answer. With 6:27 to play in the first half, Westminster had its largest lead of the game at 13 points, 37-24.
 
Despite the double figure deficit, CWU was resilient and took control of the final six minutes of play. The Crimson and Black closed out the half going on a 15-2 run to tie things at 39-all. Pana guided the methodical run and scored nine of the team's 15 points. The other six points came on pair of made three's by Samantha Bowman and Flores, respectively.
 
Both teams shot the ball well from beyond the arc in the first half. CWU had more makes than Westminster had attempts, but the percentage game fell in the Griffins favors. CWU was 8-15 from deep for 53.3%, while Westminster went 4-7 for a 57.1 shooting percentage. Overall, the Griffins shot 55.2% (16-29), while Wildcats were at 46.9% on 15-32 shooting.
 
"Westminster came out hot and shot the ball really well. Was proud of our team at the end of the first have time commit to the defensive adjustment we made and go on a run to tie it a half," CWU Head Coach Randi Richardson-Thornley said.
 
In what was a close game down to the end, but the third quarter seemed to make the difference for Westminster as the team outscored CWU 19-11 in the frame. Bowman nailed a layup for the Wildcats early to keep things tied at 41-all and gave them the lead, 42-41, with a 1-2 trip at the line with 8:13 to play in the third.
 
Westminster then managed to string together a 12-1 run that chewed up just over five minutes of clock time before CWU answered. The surge by the Griffins gave them a double-digit lead yet again, 53-43, with 4:11 to play in the third.
 
The Wildcats did not end their drought until the 2:51 mark when Flores hit a long jumper to bring the score to 53-45. The two teams traded a few shots in the final minutes, but the Griffins held a nine-point advantage, 58-49, going into the final 10 minutes of regulation.
 
The Wildcats managed to put up 11 fourth quarter points, but the Griffins added 12 to secure the 10-point win and stay undefeated. CWU was able to get its deficit to single digits a handful of times in the fourth, but quick responses by the Griffins never allowed the Wildcats get the game within two scores.
 
The second half slump did not help the Wildcats as they were just 9-23 from the floor overall for 39.1% and had just one made triple on nine attempts for 11.1%. The Griffins did not fare much better shooting 39.3% (11-28) in the second half and also had just one made three on four attempts for 25%. Westminster did manage to go 8-12 from the free throw line for 66.7%, while the Wildcats were just 2-5 for 40%.
 
"We came out a little flat in the second half and could never recover against a very disciplined team. We have to do a better job of valuing possessions overall and we must improve upon this heading into tomorrow's game," Coach Richardson-Thornley said.
 
Three Wildcats posted double figure points led by Pana with 20 as she played all 40 minutes. She shot 8-17 from the floor, was 3-7 from deep, while dishing out six assists to go along with three steals and seven rebounds. Bowman poured in 15 points on a 6-8 shooting performance and grabbed six boards. She also had two blocks in the game.
 
Flores rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11 points on 4-10 made buckets and was 3-5 from beyond the arc. She also had a game-high eight rebounds. As team, the Wildcats shot 43.6% for the game, while the Griffins were 47.4% for the game. CWU also took care of the ball having just 13 turnovers for the game.
 
CWU is back on the hardwood Saturday (tomorrow) for day two of the Fairfield Inn Tournament. The Wildcats will take on Colorado Christian University with tip-off set for 1 p.m. PT.