EUGENE, Ore. – The Northwest Christian University women's basketball team erased a 15-point halftime deficit with one of the best halves they have played all season and wrestled a 68-56 victory away from rival Corban University on Tuesday night in the quarterfinal round of the Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament presented by U.S. Bank.
 
The fourth-seeded Beacons (19-11) made the most of their first ever home playoff game, walking away with their 19th victory of the season to set a new school record for wins. Corban finishes the season at 16-14.
 
The first half belonged to the travelers as Corban established a 16-10 lead after the first quarter as the Beacons shot just 3-for-18 from the field. Senior Jade Lowery set the tone, scoring nine points in the quarter before finishing the half with 15.
 
With starting point guard Monique Thompson straddled with two fouls towards the end of the first quarter, things only got worse for the Beacons in the second and Corban took a 38-23 lead into halftime.
 
The much-needed intermission couldn't have come at a better time for the Beacons who switched to a zone defense in the third quarter and shifted the offensive focus in an attempt to turn things around. Head Coach Heath Alexander said, "At halftime we talked about making it one possession at a time and I told them that it wasn't going to be one person was going to get us back into the game but five were. We drew up some plays to go inside a little more to the posts to get some better movement and it paid off."
 
Paid off indeed. NCU stormed out of the gates on a 17-1 run, taking the lead at the 3:30 mark of the third quarter. The Beacons frustrated the Warriors who ended up getting just one field goal in the period. The steamroll continued into the fourth quarter and when Corban was forced to foul in the final two minutes, NCU made good on 10 of 12 free-throw attempts to seal the win.
 
"That was the best half of basketball we have played all season," said Coach Alexander. "I am very proud of how we just kept fighting."
 
NCU was led by Hanna Mack (pictured), finishing the game with 13 points and ten rebounds for third double-double of the season. The junior also led the defensive effort, collecting four huge blocks in the second half run. Thompson proved to be the much needed catalyst after returning in the third quarter. With the sophomore on the floor, NCU outscored Corban by 24 points. Thompson finished with ten points and seven rebounds.
 
Andrea Gloss added 13 points and three blocks, Niki Duncan scored nine and Jeni Hoffert came off the bench to add eight. Sami Pitts also scored eight and hit a pair of three-pointers, bringing her within one of tying NCU's career record for triples (132).
 
Lowery was only able to score five points in the second half, all on free-throws, finishing with a team-high 20 points for the Warriors. Sadie Pilgeram added 11 points and Payton Wilcox scored a double-double with ten points and ten boards.
 
NCU survives and advances to the semifinals of the CCC tournament and will travel to face No. 1 seed Southern Oregon University on Friday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 pm.