ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Central Washington Wildcat Women's Basketball suffered its first loss of the season a close game with in-region foe Hawaii Pacific. The Sharks held on a for a slim 81-76 win inside Nicholson Pavilion.
 
The game saw a number of runs and both squads looked to push the pace. Both teams shot the ball with CWU (1-1) having a slight edge 47.4%-46.2%. A 15-4 edge in bench points and a 40-34 points in the paint advantage went to the Sharks (2-0).
 
"Honestly, I am really pleased with our team. I thought we competed for 40 minutes," CWU Head Coach Randi Richardson-Thornley. "That's all I ask of them is to give their teammates their best for 40 minutes whether they're on the bench or the floor."
 
The Wildcats and Sharks traded shots right out the gate setting up the night for a fast-paced game between the two squads. Through the first five minutes of play, HPU held a slim 13-12 lead.
 
Samantha Bowman was the guiding force through the first five minutes going a clean 2-2 from the floor to go along with a pair of rebounds. Helping the Wildcats as well was five fouls by HPU helped the them get more shots at the free throw line.
 
The Sharks managed to jump up by three, 17-14, late in the first but the Wildcats scored five points in the final two minutes. Bowman, Kaelie Flores, and Alexis Pana all had four points to help CWU lead by one, 19-18, going into the second.
 
Defense was stout for both squads in the early going of the second. The Wildcats trailed 23-21 before Taylor Shaw nailed a corner three off the no look pass from Pana and CWU retook the lead 24-23.
 
Following a turnover by HPU on the next possession, CWU got three more points as Pana found Bowman in the paint for a layup. She drew contact for the and-one. Bowman hit the free throw and the Wildcats lead grew to 27-23.
 
The Sharks continued to make shots as well and kept the Wildcats within striking distance. The Wildcats were just as efficient as they got made shots in the paint from Bowman who was battling in the paint. At the media timeout, she had 13 of CWU's points on 6-7 shooting, but HPU held the lead 35-33 with 2:42 to go until halftime.
 
With both teams maintaining a quick pace, it was clear that the two squads were not going to be reliant on walking the ball up the court. The Sharks managed to stay in the lead in the final two minutes of the first half and took a 41-38 edge into the locker room.
 
The Wildcats shot 45.2% in the first 20 minutes but had just three made triples on 13 attempts for 23.1%. Bowman's 13 points on 6-7 shooting led the charge for CWU while Flores chipped in nine.
 
Helping HPU in the first half was a 53.3 shooting percentage overall. The Sharks also shot 5-10 from three-point range. Alysha Marcucci led all players with 15 first half points on 5-9 made shots. She was also 3-4 from beyond the arc.
 
The Sharks struck first to start the third with layup at the 8:10 mark of the third to extend their lead to 43-38. Flores was the first answer for the Wildcats as she drew a foul in the paint for a pair of free throws. She made both to keep CWU within three, 43-40.
 
HPU put nine more points before the media timeout at 4:48 in the third, while CWU added just five. The Sharks held a 52-45 edge but the Wildcats never allowed them to get up by double figures.
 
Out of the timeout, Pana nailed a quick jumper while Bowman hit a contested layup to keep the Wildcats deficit at single figures. HPU hit a jumper with 3:24 to play in the third to stay up 55-49.
 
The Wildcats then outscored the Sharks 14-4 in the final three minutes of the third to take a 63-59 lead into the fourth. Helping the Wildcats in the third was 5-6 shooting from deep and 9-12 shooting overall. They held the Sharks to 7-17 shooting to lead by four.
  
The Sharks answered in the first five minutes scoring 11 unanswered to take a 70-63 lead over the Wildcats. A pair of late shots in the paint helped the Sharks stay in front while the Wildcats managed to claw back into the game late and trail by just four, 74-70, with 33.3 seconds on the clock.
 
It became a game of free throws in the final seconds. The Wildcats looked to extend the game as much as possible as the two squads combined for nine free throws in the final 35 seconds. A made layup by Bowman with 14.7 t play got CWU within four, but she missed the and-one opportunity.
 
Helping HPU escape Nicholson Pavilion with the win was an 8-9 shooting performance at the charity strip in the final 35 seconds as they secured an 81-76 win.
 
"Honestly, with tonight's loss I am much happier with how we played compared to last night's win. HPU is a great team and our players fought," Coach Richardson-Thornley said. "We made big shots, we made some good adjustments defensively, and I'm happy with how we competed."
 
Leading the way for the Wildcats were Bowman and Pana who both finished with a double-double. Bowman was the leading scorer and rebounder with 22 and 16, respectively. She finished 10-14 shooting and had five of her boards come on the offensive end.
 
Pana added 16 points and grabbed 10 boards for CWU. She finished 5-9 from the field and was a perfect 6-6 at the free throw line to go along with five assists. Shaw and Flores also scored in double figures with 15 and 13, respectively.
 
"I thought Samantha Bowman had a breakout game tonight with 22 points and 12 rebounds, with five of those being offensive. Lex had a stellar night as well," Coach Richardson-Thornley noted. "She really stepped up in big moments when were kind of struggling to score offensively. With tonight, it really stinks to get the L, but our team got better and we're going to be better moving forward."
 
The Wildcats will be in another tournament next weekend when they travel to Nampa, Idaho for the Fairfield Inn Tournament hosted by Northwest Nazarene. CWU will play Westminster College (Utah) and Colorado Christian.