EUGENE, Ore. – No.15 Northwest Christian forced overtime with the No. 7-ranked Eastern Oregon Mountaineers on Saturday night, but were unable to edge their CCC foe as the Mounties left the Morse Event Center with a 69-61 victory.
 
NCU (15-3, 8-3 CCC) shot just over 37 percent on the night as they took the top-ranked Mounties (20-2, 13-0) to an extra period for the first time on the year. Anamaria Virjoghe notched her third 20-point game of the season, finishing with 21 points, eight boards and four steals.
 
Eastern's defense came out strong in the first period, holding the Beacons to just three field-goals and a free-throw in the games first 10 minutes. The Mounties hit two of their six total three-pointers in the period and went into the second with a 14-7 lead.
 
The Mountaineers extended their lead to double-digits, 18-7, thirty-seconds into the second period on a fast-break layup from Maya Ah You-Dias. The Beacons rebounded soon after when both of the Mounties top scoring threats (Ah You-Dias and Stormee Van Belle) ran into foul trouble.
 
NCU quickly took advantage of their mismatches, running-off seven unanswered points to cut their deficit to three at 20-17 with five minutes left in the half. A Kaylynn Bush layup brought the Beacons within one at the 1:23-mark, but EOU's Payton Parrish gave her team a little breathing room with a three at the end of the period, sending the game into intermission with the Mounties at a 27-23 advantage.
 
With their complete starting-five back in the game, Eastern Oregon picked up the pace to begin the third period. The Mounties steadily increased their advantage in the early minutes, building their lead back up to ten at 40-30 midway through the period.
 
NCU again bounced-back, thanks to the inside play of Virjoghe who keyed a six-point run for the Beacons. Northwest Christian scored 10 of the final 12 points in the period, going into the final ten-minutes of regulation just two points behind EOU, 42-40.
 
The Mountaineers hit two quick layups to start the fourth, building their lead to six at 46-40 with nine minutes to go. Beacon guard Niki Duncan hit a three on the following possession to cut the deficit in half, and the two sides stayed within three points for the remainder of the period.
 
The Beacons tied to the score for the first time, 55-55, with 1:20 left on the clock when forward Katerina Brejchova sank an open three off a Virjoghe assist. Van Belle hit three free-throws in the next minute of action, giving the Mounties a three-point lead with just under 30-seconds to go. Virjoghe cut the lead to one with a turn-around post move with fifteen seconds left. NCU fouled Van Belle on the ensuing inbound, but the forward missed both of her attempts. Northwest Christian quickly pushed the ball up the court, with freshman Morgan McKinney drawing a foul on a hard drive in the lane to send her to the line to shoot two with her team down one, 58-57. McKinney went one-for-two on her attempts, sending the game to overtime ties at 58.
 
Foul trouble plagued the Beacons in the final period, with the freshmen duo of McKinney and Virjoghe both reaching their limit within the first 60-seconds of action. Eastern out-scored the Beacons 11-3 in the extra set, keeping their undefeated conference season alive with their 13th win.
 
Brejchova earned the games sole double-double, finishing the night with 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Beacons.
 
Parrish led the Mounties in scoring with 16. Van Belle was next in line with 15, while Mariah Swanson was the third Mountaineer in double-figures with 12 points and seven boards.
 
The Beacons hit the road next weekend, traveling to Washington for a pair of games. NCU's first stop will be in Kirkland on Friday, January 26 for a clash with the Northwest University Eagles. Eastern is back in action on Wednesday, January 24 when they travel to face the College of Idaho Coyotes. Both games are scheduled for 5:30 p.m. tip-offs.