KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – Oregon Tech held off a late comeback chance by visiting Bushnell University on Saturday afternoon, as the Owls took the Cascade Collegiate Conference women's basketball battle, 71-64, at Danny Miles Court.
 
Head Coach Chad Meadors said, "You can't turn the ball over 28 times and expect to win games. We gave ourselves a chance but started off in a hole and weren't confident with the basketball early on. Early in the game, our inability to execute and not turn the ball over affected our defense. The third and fourth quarters were a different story, but we were down 19 points, and you don't come back from that very often. The goal will be to play every quarter like we played the fourth quarter tonight."
 
Oregon Tech (11-4, 7-2 CCC) came out strong on both ends of the floor in the first half, forcing 14 turnovers and leading by as many as 19 points to take a 37-23 advantage into the break. The Beacons (9-5, 6-3), needing to rally off a big comeback, came out with heavy pressure in the third quarter, and started to make up ground, narrowing the deficit to 12.
 
Still down by double digits, Bushnell took six threes within the first three minutes of the fourth, hitting two to bring the score to 57-47. An Owl technical foul gave the Beacons a chance to bring the game back to single digits. Aspen Slifka made both free throws and capped off a 10-0 run with a layup to bring the score to 57-51 with six minutes to go.
 
Slifka cut the lead to seven, 65-58, with a three at the 2:50 mark. Bushnell kept up the fight, getting within six on a Libby Mathis layup with 33 seconds to go, but Oregon Tech continued to make shots, finishing 54.5% from the floor in the period to hold off the comeback.  
 
The sides combined for 51 turnovers on the game. Free throws proved to be critical for the Owls as they went 20-for-21 at the line in the seven-point victory. The Beacons finished 3-for-9 at the free throw line.
 
Bushnell was led by Slifka, who finished with a season-high 22 points on 8-of-16 shooting, adding seven rebounds. The junior shot a season-best from the three-point line, going 4-of-7. Mathis posted another strong performance, recording 16 points and six rebounds on 8-of-11 shooting from the field.
 
The Beacons shot 41.9% from the floor, making 9-of-31 (.290) from beyond the arc.
 
Olivia Sprague led the Owls in scoring with 20 points. Maddyson Tull posted a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds, while Gabbie Gascon and Kennedy Tull added 11 points apiece. As a team, OIT shot 37.7% from the floor, making 29.4% from three-point range.
 
Bushnell returns to the Morse Center next weekend, hosting the College of Idaho (Jan. 13) and No. 20 Eastern Oregon (Jan. 14).