LACEY, Wash. – Central Washington University women's basketball is headed to the postseason after securing a 70-60 road win Thursday night at Saint Martin's University. The Wildcats had a pair of players also hit career marks in the win.
 
Entering Thursday night's game, senior Kaelie Flores needed 15 points to reach 1,000 for her career, while junior Kassidy Malcolm was just three rebounds shy of 500 for her career. Both players easily eclipsed their respective marks and were key factors in the Wildcats (17-10, 12-7) road win.
 
The Wildcats played well on both sides of the ball as they shot 42.2% overall and held the Saints (14-12, 9-10 GNAC) to just 33.3% en route to a berth for the GNAC Tournament. CWU also shot 37.9% from deep on 11 made threes and held the Saints to just 17.6% (3-17).
 
"SMU really made us work for the win tonight. Our offense got flowing in the second and third quarter which gave us enough momentum to pull this one out," CWU Head Coach Randi Richardson-Thornley said. "I'm happy with how our team shared the ball and found great shots within the possession."
 
Bench production also helped in the Wildcats win as they outscored the Saints reserves 26-2. Points in the paint was nearly even with SMU barely winning that battle 32-30. The difference maker came in the long ball thanks to CWU nailing 11 and holding SMU to just three makes.
 
It did not take Malcolm long to reach 500 career rebounds as all three of her boards came in the first two minutes of action. Her third rebound of the game to reach 500 came with 8:49 to play in the first and paved the way for a solid night cleaning up the boards.
 
"For Kass to already have 500 rebounds in her junior year with missing 10 games this season is amazing to me," Richardson-Thornley noted. "She's one of the grittiest players I have been around and her rebounding stats are direct proof of that. Happy for her to reach this milestone and excited to see her reach many more."
 
The game was close in the opening minutes as the two squads played to 5-5 tie with 7:14 to play in the first. The Wildcats managed to jump 13-7 lead thanks to an 8-2 run forcing SMU to call a quick timeout.
 
After the pause in action, the back-and-forth scoring affair picked up. CWU managed to get up eight, 17-9, thanks to a Flores jumper. They had a chance to make it a double-digit lead but the Saints closed out the last 2:30 of the first with four straight points to bring the score to 17-13.
 
The Saints 4-0 run grew to an 11-2 run in the first four minutes of the second quarter which helped them grab their first and only lead of the night, 20-19. A long stall in action to check a potential foul on Central ultimately benefited them as the offense came back to life.
 
Trailing 20-19 with 6:20 to play in the quarter, the Crimson and Black kicked it into high gear on both sides of the ball. The offense went on a tear scoring 19 points in the final 6:20, while their defense allowed just five points in that span.
 
Back-to-back three pointers from Flores and Samantha Bowman sparked a 15-2 run by the Cats.  All 15 points came from beyond the arc, with Bowman hitting a pair. Joining the long ball party were Taylor Shaw and Alexis Pana as the Wildcats raced out to a 33-22 lead.
 
The Saints mustered their final three points on a free throw and a made jumper in the final 1:22 of the first half. The Wildcats pace was too much to match in that final 6:20 as they took a 38-25 into halftime.
 
After having just 19 points in the first 11 minutes of the game, the Wildcats scored 19 in the final 6:20 of the second quarter which made the difference in the first half and keeping the Saints from getting back within single digits the rest of the night.
 
The 21-12 edge in points from the second quarter paved way for a solid third quarter from the Wildcats who scored 17 and led by as much as 23. Despite the large lead, the Saints made things interesting late in the fourth and got back within 10 a few times.
 
Flores eclipsed the 1,000 point-mark early in the third a pair of triples in the first 90 seconds. Her second three-pointer of the stanza came with 7:30 on the clock to help her reach 1,001 and become these second active player on the team to eclipse that career mark.
 
"Kaelie had a great night and was a huge lift for us on both ends of the floor. Her ability to stretch the floor and knock down threes makes it tough on opposing defenses," Richardson-Thornley said. "I'm happy and proud of her accomplishment of 1,000 points. She's put in a lot of hard work and I'm happy she's able to reach this great milestone in her career. It's very well deserved."
 
Flores' two triples ultimately sparked what was a 14-4 run by the Crimson and Black and helped them get out to their largest lead of 23, 52-29, with 3:22 to play in the third. The Saints managed to make shots late in the frame and trailed by 16, 55-39, going into the fourth.
 
A three from Pana to start the fourth quarter pushed the lead to 58-39, and Bowman pushed it back to a 21-point edge, 60-39, with a jumper on the ensuing possession. With 8:41 to play, the Saints began to chip away at the CWU lead.
 
SMU pieced together a 15-4 scoring run that brought the game's score to within 10 points, 66-56, with just over 2:30 to play in regulation. They had chances to cut it to single figures but stout team defense and clutch shooting from Flores secured the win for Central.
 
Flores nailed a wide-open layup in transition after CWU broke SMU's full court press. She then nailed a pair of clutch free throws in the final minute to give CWU its win and a berth to the GNAC Tournament.
 
Flores fell just shy of a double-double. She had eight rebounds to go along with her 20 points. She shot 7-12 from the floor and 4-8 from deep. Flores needs just two more rebounds to reach 500 for her career.
 
Bowman was once again a force off the bench scoring 17 points in 25 minutes of action. She also had five boards in the win. Pana put together a double-double performance with 10 rebounds and 11 points. She also had a game-high five assists.
 
Malcolm finished with 10 rebounds to eclipse the career mark of 500 in just three seasons of play. She also had seven points in the win on 3-7 and dished out a pair of assists.
 
The Wildcats are back on the hardwood this Saturday for their final game of the 2019-20 regular season. Central will be in Seattle to take on Seattle Pacific. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. against the Falcons.