ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University Women's Basketball Team continued their momentum from yesterday, taking down the 24th-ranked UT Tyler Patriots on the final day of the CWU D2 Tip-Off Classic.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
- Final: Central Washington (71), #24 UT Tyler (58)
- Records: CWU (2-1), UTT (1-2)
- Location: Nicholson Arena (Ellensburg, Wash.)
QUOTING CWU HEAD WOMEN'S BASKETBALL COACH RANDI RICHARDSON:
"I'm very pleased with our team's growth over the weekend, and to come out with two quality wins. These games and the experience we have had will continue to pay dividends down the road."
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Capri Sims began the game with a layup, but was answered by Polina Latysheva of UT Tyler to tie the game at two each.
- Back-to-back layups by Sims started a 13-3 run by the 'Cats that was capped by a layup from Mackenzie Schulz to make it a 15-5 CWU Lead with 4:01 left in the first.
- Edit Merivirta earned a layup for the Patriots followed by Hayley Cumming earning a layup and a pair of free-throws to cut the CWU lead down to 15-11 with 2:40 left in the first.
- Back-to-back layups by Lauren Burnside followed by a layup from Sims wrapped up the action in the first quarter as the 'Cats rebuilt their lead back to double-digits at 21-11.
- Jadyn Middleton drilled a three for the Patriots to begin the second quarter which sparked a back-and-forth battle between the two teams until the 6:37 mark when another layup from Sims started an 11-2 run by CWU to send the teams to the half break with the 'Cats leading 36-19.
- Sims began the third quarter with a layup, but the Patriots answered with a three from Cumming, which saw Rylee Leishman respond with a three of her own to make it a 40-22 CWU lead with 8:43 left in the first.
- An 8-3 run by the Patriots cut into the Wildcat lead, as a free-throw by Cumming made it a 43-30 game in favor of the 'Cats with 5:40 left in the third.
- The Wildcats responded with an 8-2 run of their own, and with a last second three from Baylee Maldonado to beat the buzzer the 'Cats took the 54-39 lead heading into the final 10 minutes.
- UT Tyler came out swinging to begin the fourth quarter, going on a 20-7 run, forcing the 'Cats to burn two timeouts in the process, as the 'Cats led by just six points at 61-55 with 4:50 left in the game.
- A free-throw followed by a three from Amaya Jarvis sparked a much needed 10-3 run to end the game, capped by a three from Kayla Thornton as the Wildcat defense stepped up to help CWU come away with their second win of the weekend with the 71-58 victory over the 24th-ranked UT Tyler Patriots.
STATS FROM THE GAME:
- Sims had her best game of the weekend, logging 23 points to go with seven rebounds and a team-high eight assists.
- Jarvis earned her first career double-double, scoring 11 points to pair with 10 rebounds while adding four assists and a block.
- Maldonado and Nicole Wertenberger both added eight points with Maldonado contributing three rebounds and two assists and Wertenberger adding an assist.
- Thornton finished with seven points while adding four rebounds, four assists, and a steal.
- Leishman grabbed six points to go with a rebound.
- Schulz and Burnside both logged four points with Schulz finishing with five rebounds, an assist, and a steal while Burnside added four rebounds, an assist, and a steal.
- Kimberly Carrada Sanchez added three rebounds.
- The Wildcats finished the game shooting 57.1 percent from the floor, 40 percent from three, and 53.8 percent at the free-throw line.
- UT Tyler saw Cumming finish with 20 points while Latysheva and Middleton added 14 and 12 points, respectfully.
- The Patriots were held to 39.3 percent from the floor, 38.1 percent from three, and went six for nine at the charity stripe.
- The Wildcats outrebounded UTT by a 37-19 margin.
SERIES HISTORY:
- This was the second-ever meeting between the two squads with the Wildcats winning both matchups.
- This was the first game held at either teams home court.
- The 'Cats defeated the then seventh-ranked Patriots on Nov. 5, 2023 in Langley Township, B.C., coming away with a 64-61 victory.
UP NEXT:
- The Wildcats will have a week off to prepare for their trip to Northwest Nazarene to participate in the CCAA-GNAC Crossover from Nov. 13 through Nov. 14 in Nampa, Idaho.
- The 'Cats will first take on the Cal Poly Humboldt Lumberjacks on Friday the 13th at 4:15 p.m. before concluding the weekend against the Cal State East Bay Pioneers on Saturday the 14th at noon, both times in PST.
- Both games will be held inside the Johnson Sports Center.
