MONMOUTH, Ore. - The Central Washington University women's basketball team took on Western Oregon in a mid-day matchup. The Wildcats completed the weekend sweep by knocking off the Wolves 70-50 on Saturday.

CWU (11-7, 6-4 GNAC) had multiple factors play into the road win but it was the work of the bench and points in the paint that helped them down Western Oregon (10-6, 4-6 GNAC) on the road. The Wildcats won the points in the paint battle, 40-20, and their reserves outscored the WOU reserves 25-12. 22-point rallies in the first and third quarter also helped the Wildcats en route to their second straight win along with a 42-20 edge in rebounds.

"Happy with the consistency of our effort and performance on both side of the ball tonight for the entirety of the game," CWU Head Coach Randi Richardson-Thornley said. "Very happy with our rebounding performance as well. We improved in the areas this week that we wanted and got two necessary wins to finish out the first half of conference."
 
The Wildcats  made their presence felt in the opening quarter against the Wolves. Kaelie Flores knocked down a jumper that gave the team a 6-5 lead with 7:41 left in the opening frame. Flores followed that jumper with another on the next possession.
 
Later in the quarter, Alexis Pana was able to rattle home a three-pointer. The Wildcats held an 11-7 lead over the Wolves at the media timeout.
 
The Wildcats led 13-11 with 2:12 left in the first quarter. JonNae Richardson slashed into the lane for a layup. That would be the start of a 9-2 run that favored the Wildcats.
 
Richardson's layup was followed by a three-pointer from Kassidy Malcolm. On the other end of the floor, Richardson was able to poke a pass away and fly down the court for an easy layup. The shot pushed the Wildcat lead to 20-11.
 
On the Wolves next possession, Pana nabbed a pass and started another fast break opportunity for the Wildcats. Pana dished the ball off to Malcolm who was fouled on a layup attempt. Malcolm would hit both free-throws to extend the Wildcat lead to 22-11.
 
At the end of the first quarter, the Wildcats led 22-13. The Wildcats went 8-13 (61.5%) from the floor in the opening quarter. The totals include a pair of three-pointers.
 
Flores opened the second quarter by converting another jump shot. Both teams experienced a bit of an offensive drought, as the Wildcats led 24-13 with 7:45 left in the first half. Taylor Shaw ended the slight drought with a jumper of her own.
 
The Wildcats were able to hold the Wolves scoreless for the first 4:04 of the first half. After a basket from the Wolves Tresai McCarver cut into the Wildcats led. The score was 26-15 with 5:56 left in the first half.
 
Pana ended the half with a highlight play. Pana drove left, attacking the mid block. The senior guard spun to her right, causing the defender to fall to the ground. Pana was able to stop and pop, scoring the final bucket of the first half with a jumper in the paint. The ankle-snatching play pushed the Wildcat lead to 36-23 at the end of the first half.
 
The Wildcats shot the ball well in the first half. The team converted 50 percent (14-28) of their shot attempts from the field. They also went 5-6 from the free throw line.
 
Pana led the group with nine points at halftime. She added three assists and three rebounds. Richardson was also strong in the first half. She knocked down all three of her shot attempts and had seven points at the end of the first 20 minutes.
 
The Wildcats continued their strong play in the opening stages of the second half. The team ripped off a 7-0 run, forcing the Wolves to call a timeout. Malcolm opened the run by knocking down two free throws.
 
Later, Flores came top with a steal and scored a basket on the other end of the floor. After a free throw from Flores, Samantha Bowman capped the run with a layup of her own. The run gave the Wildcats a 43-23 lead. 
 
Bowman came alive in the third quarter. During the middle stages, Bowman hit a jump shot. She'd extend her range and bury a three-pointer. The shot gave the Wildcats a 50-27 lead with five minutes remaining in the third quarter.
 
Bowman's surge ended with three more free throws before she was taken off the floor in what was a game that CWU showed no signs of losing. Her 10 third quarter points fueled the 22-point effort from the team as a whole.
 
Going into fourth quarter, CWU was in the driver seat holding a 58-36 edge. The Wolves managed to shoot 50% (6-12), but the Wildcats went 7-13 for 53.9% from the floor to stay in front.
 
The fourth quarter was the only frame where WOU outscored CWU, 14-12. The two-point difference made no difference though as the Crimson and Black kept the Wolves to scoring just 50 points for the game.
 
The Wildcats managed to outscore the Wolves 9-4 in the first 3:04 of play in the fourth which gave them a 67-40 lead. Neither team scored again until there was 4:04 to play in the quarter.
 
Despite scoring just three more points in the final four minutes, CWU walked away with the 20-point road win to complete the Oregon road trip at 2-0.
 
Four Wildcats scored in double figures led by a double-double performance from Malcolm. She scored 11 points and grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds. Flores was the game-high scorer with 15 points to go alone with seven boards.
 
Bowman finished with 12 points and had a quartet of rebounds to go along with two steals. Shaw added 10 points and Pana fell just short of double-digits points scoring nine but had a game-high seven assists.
 
It'll be a quick turnaround for the Crimson and Black as they return to the court on Tuesday, Jan. 28. They'll make the trip to Nampa, Idaho for a game against Northwest Nazarene. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. PT.