ELLENSBURG, Wash.—Down by as many as 13 in the third quarter, Central Washington (19-7 overall, 12-5 GNAC) rallied behind Kizzah Maltezo's 29 points to overtake Montana State Billings (16-10, 10-4) in overtime 81-77 Thursday night.
 
Only 1.6 on the clock with no timeouts and no fouls to give, a catch-and-shoot trey from Jenna Troy to Maltezo tied it at 69-69 to force an overtime period.
 
"That was a gritty, tough win," said Central Washington Head Coach Randi Richardson-Thornley. "Credit MSUB who played very well tonight. We found a way to win in the final quarter and got the job done. I don't know if we have played a worse thirty minutes to start the game. We couldn't find a rhythm on either side of the ball and MSUB played a huge part in that."
 
"However, I am so proud of our girls for keeping their heads in it and finding small victories to hold on to. They found ways to get enough stops and scores in the final quarter and overtime. Kizzah came up clutch and hit some big shots when we needed them, not to mention that final bucket in regulation was incredible. Now time to bounce back, recover, and get ready for senior night on Saturday."
 
"Sunshine" Valerie Huerta led the Wildcats through the opening half scoring 13 of her career-high 16 points in tonight's contest. Huerta also finished with six assists and a steal.
 
Maltezo scored 28 of her 29 points in the second half and overtime tonight, tying her season-high previously set when CWU upset No. 5 Western Washington 76-68.
 
Kassidy Malcolm added 15 points, 12 rebounds, two assists and one steal: grabbing her second double-double of the season.
 
Samantha Bowman continued her double-double dominance, grabbing 18 rebounds, two blocks, and scoring an additional 12 points for Central.
 
Scoring 11 of her career-high 30 points, Taryn Shelley led MSU Billings to a 33-30 lead over CWU at the half.
 
After trailing by 12 at the end of the third quarter, Central put together a 26-point fourth quarter to end regulation and force overtime on the back of Maltezo's buzzer-beating three. 
 
While the Yellowjackets held a one-point lead 73-72 with 1:17 on the clock in overtime, back-to-back three pointers from Troy and Maltezo put the nail in the coffin.
 
Shelley finished the game for MSU Billings with a 30 point and 14 rebound double-double, her eighth of the season. Shelley also added one steal, one block, and one assist to her final line.
 
Central moves on to celebrate senior day as they host Seattle Pacific this Saturday, February 26^th at 4:00 p.m.