OLYMPIA, Wash. – Bella Pedrojetti scored a career-high 24 points as the visiting Bushnell University women's basketball team edged the Evergreen State College, 59-58, in Cascade Collegiate Conference action on Friday evening.

A jumper from Pedrojetti gave the Beacons a 58-57 lead with three minutes to go in regulation and neither side made a basket for the remainder of the contest. Pedrojetti hit one of two free throws to bring the lead to two points with 18 seconds on the clock and the Beacons held on after the Geoducks' potential game-tying free throw hit the front of the rim.

Head Coach Chad Meadors said, "We pulled one out by the skin of our teeth. We were prepared for their zone and jumped on them but they really came back in that second quarter, battled and got physical with us. We struggled to score, got a little rattled and didn't make some plays but settled down in the third quarter and our press was effective all night long. We found a way to get it done and got out with a win."

With the win, Bushnell (8-3, 5-1 CCC) extends its win streak over Evergreen (5-4, 2-4) to 13.

Bushnell ran away with the first quarter, getting out to a 22-6 lead before the momentum quickly shifted in favor of the Geoducks. Evergreen, who shot 13.3% (2-of-15) in the opening period, answered with an 18-0 run to tie the game at 22-22 just five minutes into the second. The Beacons trailed 32-29 at the half after shooting just 3-of-21 in the quarter.

Haley Hanson closed a back-and-forth third quarter with a three-pointer at the buzzer to put the Beacons up 50-49.

A steal and layup on the inbound pass by Olivia Bailon gave Bushnell a 56-54 lead with five minutes to go in the fourth. The Geoducks went up by one on a three-pointer before Pedrojetti knocked in a jumper to retake the lead. Neither side could get a shot to fall down the stretch and the Beacons came away with the one-point victory after securing the rebound on the Evergreen missed free throw.  

Pedrojetti, who led all scorers, finished 9-of-17 from the floor with four three-pointers. Hanson also reached her career high with the Beacons, adding nine points and seven rebounds. Kalina Rojas finished with a game-high 11 rebounds. Bailon added eight points on 4-for-5 shooting.

"Olivia made some plays in that fourth quarter on the press, had a nice backdoor bucket and really solidified our defense on that end of the floor," said Meadors.  

Bailon, playing in her hometown and in front of a sixth-grade club team, added, "It meant a lot to have the crowd out there. It's really important for the younger generation to see people they look up to since I was once one of them. It was definitely a team effort of just trying to get another bucket. Everyone just did their part on a team. It was a tough game and I'm glad we pulled it out."

The Geoducks were led by Sydney Vanness, who finished with 18 points. Paris Wilson posted 15 points, while Monique Bungay added 11.

Up next, Bushnell takes on Northwest University tomorrow at 3 p.m.