Gaels dump Bulldogs out of first
Danielle Mauldin and Jackie Nared shot 4 of 4 from the free-throw line in the final 17 seconds Thursday as Saint Mary’s (11-4, 3-0) took over first place alone in the West Coast Conference with a 54-51 win over Gonzaga (12-5, 2-1) at Moraga, Calif.
Taelor Karr’s 3-point attempt at the buzzer missed for the eight-time WCC-champion Bulldogs, who had won 107 of their previous 116 WCC games.
Saint Mary’s built a nine-point lead with 1 minute, 47 seconds left in the first half. GU scored the next 14 points to lead 34-29 with 16:36 left. The Bulldogs built their biggest lead (46-38) with 8:01 to go but didn’t score during the final 2:53.
The Gaels shot 22 of 27 from the line while GU finished 5 of 6.
Sunny Greinacher led GU with 12 points. Haiden Palmer and Karr scored 11 apiece, and Shelby Cheslek had 11 rebounds and four blocked shots.
Northern Arizona 83, Eastern Washington 68: Amy Patton had team highs of 23 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Lumberjacks (3-10, 2-2 Big Sky Conference) past the Eagles (7-7, 3-2) at Flagstaff, Ariz.
Hayley Hodgins came off the bench to lead EWU with 16 points, shooting 6 of 10 from the field. Lexie Nelson added 15 points, Melissa Williams had 13 points and team highs of 11 rebounds and four assists, and Chenise Pakootas added 10 points and eight rebounds.
EWU trailed by nine points early but took a 36-33 halftime lead on Hodgins’ 3-pointer and Williams’ jumper during the final 1:30. The Eagles’ lead grew to six early in the second half before NAU took control with a 24-9 run.
Idaho 68, Denver 60: Alyssa Charlston had a game-high 14 rebounds and tied Stacey Barr with a team-high 17 points as the Vandals (5-10, 2-2 Western Athletic Conference) topped the host Pioneers (8-8, 3-2).
Charlston shot 8 of 16 from the field while Barr finished 4 for 6 on 3-pointers. Addie Schivo added 16 points off the bench, hitting 11 of 12 from the line.
UI led 18-6 before Denver closed out the first half with a 22-4 run. The Pioneers’ lead grew to 10 before Idaho responded, taking the lead for good on Schivo’s 3-pointer with 5:46 left.