Box Score

BELLINGHAM, Wash. ââ'¬" Freshman guard Emma Duff helped force overtime with a game-tying 3-pointer late in regulation and senior forward Hannah Stipanovich scored a game-high 20 points to lead four Vikings in double-figure scoring but visiting Northwest Nazarene University came away with a 78-76 overtime win against the Western Washington University women's basketball team Saturday on WECU Court at Carver Gym in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.

NNU (20-3, 16-2 GNAC) pulled ahead for the final margin on a pair of free throws with 51 seconds left in overtime. WWU (12-14, 8-10 GNAC) came close to taking the lead or tying on its final two field goal attempts of the game ââ'¬" a 3-point attempt from Duff (Tumwater, WA/Black Hills) with 35 seconds to go and a long 2-point attempt off an inbounds play from Stipanovich (St. Louis, MO/MSU Denver) at the buzzer.

The fourth quarter alone featured five ties and two lead changes, including four ties over the last 2:20. WWU trailed 58-53 with 5:13 to play in the quarter before battling back to tie the game 59-59 with 3:31 left. After the Vikings pulled ahead 62-59 with 2:34 to go, the Nighthawks answered on a 3-pointer with 2:20 left to tie the game 62-62.

The teams traded leads via free throws with under 2 minutes to go as sophomore guard Lexie Bland (Ellensburg, WA) tied the score 64-64 with 1:27 left after making 1-of-2 at the line. NNU took a 66-64 lead with 1:06 left and later led 68-65 after a basket with 33 seconds remaining before Duff hit the game-tying 3 pointer with 20 seconds remaining from the top of the arc. The Vikings held strong on the defensive end as NNU missed a potential go-ahead shot in the waning seconds to force overtime.

The back-and-forth battle ensued throughout the overtime with three ties and six lead changes in the period. Duff hit a pair of free throws for the 13th and final tie of the game with 1:22 remaining before NNU guard McKenna Walker made two free throws with 51 seconds left for the 78-76 NNU lead. Duff's potential go-ahead 3-pointer was just off the mark with 35 seconds left, and after an NNU shot clock violation left 1.6 seconds on the clock for a WWU sideline inbounds, Stipanovich's buzzer-beater attempt with one foot just inside the 3-point line caromed off the rim as time expired.

WWU led throughout the first quarter, leading 18-14 after the first period, and took a 31-29 advantage to halftime. The Nighthawks did not lead before halftime but kept the deficit within single digits and took their first lead of the game with 3:11 left in the third quarter, setting up the thrilling finish.

Stipanovich scored her 20 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field and also totaled 7 rebounds and 3 assists. She entered the evening with 991 career points (MSU Denver and WWU career combined) and with 11 first-quarter points reached the 1,000-points milestone.

Sophomore center Anna Schwecke (Evergreen, CO/Colorado-Colorado Springs) added 13 points and 8 rebounds. Redshirt freshman guard Gracie Castaneda (Arlington, WA) also finished with 13 points, adding 4 assists, while Duff had 12 points. Bland tied her career-high with a game-high 6 assists.

Walker led the Nighthawks with 17 points, going 12-of-12 at the free throw line. She also grabbed a team-high 7 rebounds. Guard Lexie Tubbs added 14 points while guard Carly Parker (12 points) and forward Danielle Jardine (10) combined for 22 points off the bench.

WWU was 26-of-50 (52.0%) from the field and made 6-of-12 (50.0%) from 3-point range. The Vikings were 18-of-26 (69.2%) at the free throw line.

NNU was 22-of-66 (33.3%) from the field and 4-of-17 (23.5%) from 3-point range. The Nighthawks went 30-of-38 (78.9%) at the free throw line.

The Vikings were hurt by a season-high 31 turnovers, compared to 19 for the Nighthawks. NNU held a 37-34 rebounding advantage and grabbed 17 offensive rebounds compared to 6 by the Vikings.

WWU (12-14, 8-10 GNAC) travels to Simon Fraser next Tuesday (7 pm) before hosting MSU Billings next Saturday (7 pm) for Senior Night. The Vikings are 6th in the GNAC standings following Saturday's action with two conference games remaining in the regular season as they look to claim a berth to the conference championships. Concordia, Simon Fraser and Western Oregon are each 7-11 in a tie for 7th heading into the final week of the regular season.

Game Notes: Vikings are 8-10 in GNAC play with two conference games remaining in the regular season…WWU is 6th in the GNAC standings heading into the final week of the regular season...the top six teams in the regular-season standings qualify for GNAC Championships...Saturday's game was the annual Pink Night with funds raised for cancer research...Saturday's game was the first overtime game of the season for the Vikings…last overtime game for WWU was a 75-72 loss in double overtime to Alaska Anchorage on 02/23/17…Vikings committed a season-high 31 turnovers…NNU was 30-of-38 at the free throw line, setting season-high totals for makes and attempts by a WWU opponent…Hannah Stipanovich reached the 1,000-points milestone (WWU and MSU Denver career combined) with a game-high 20 points, her fourth 20-point game of the season, and now has 1,011 career points…Lexie Bland tied her career-high with 6 assists.