FULLERTON, Calif. – It was another slow start for the Bushnell women's basketball team, but this time they pulled off the comeback, rallying to defeat Hope International University in overtime, 81-74.
 
Bushnell trailed by as many as eleven points late in the first quarter, but fought their way back, at one point using a 10-3 run to bring themselves to within one possession. A Mandy Sisul three-pointer with 33 seconds to play gave the Beacons their first tie of the game before a free-throw led the Royals to a 35-34 edge at the intermission.
 
In the third quarter the teams traded leads four times, but Hope pulled away, eventually hitting a jumper early in the fourth quarter to take a seven-point lead. The Beacons wouldn't lead again for the remainder of regulation, and every time they rallied, the Royals would answer.
 
It came down to a number of crucial plays for the Beacons, who came through in the clutch. Trailing  70-68 with 20 seconds to play in regulation, Ayden Krupke and Kiley Campos were able to get their hands in on a jump ball before they were forced to foul, causing a turnover. Bushnell made good on their final possession as Libby Mathis pulled in two offensive rebounds before putting in the tying layup with five seconds to play.
 
The teams were still tied 72-72 with three minutes to play in overtime when Sisul and Sabrina Flowers hit three-pointers from the same spot on the floor in back-to-back possessions, allowing the Beacons to pull away and put the game out of reach.
 
Head Coach Chad Meadors said, "It was fun to pull a rabbit out of a hat tonight, hit some big shots, and make some stops. That is a really good team that we played tonight. Hope International has a couple of guards that are hard to stay in front of, and our girls did a great job adjusting to the speed, and our young players are growing up right in front of our eyes."
 
The Beacons (1-1) shot 43.5% in the game and improved greatly on defense, allowing Hope International (2-3) to hit just 38% of their shots. Bushnell held a slim 42-41 margin on the boards and had a 21-19 edge in points off turnovers as both teams coughed up the ball 13 times.
 
Mathis made her presence felt down low, scoring team highs with 23 points, 12 rebounds and three assists. Krupke added 19 points and a career-high nine rebounds while Sisul scored 12 points behind a trio of three-pointers.
 
"We certainly leaned on big shots from Mandy and Sabrina tonight, and Libby was a work horse again and just fantastic around the hoop and facilitating everything around her. Ayden had a big second half after some foul trouble in the first half. I was so impressed with how she was able to play through that and bounce back. Kylie Campos came in and just did an outstanding job on defense in the fourth quarter and overtime. She helped us get stop after stop and that really turned the tide of the game."
 
The Royals were led by Faith Brinkman and Trasara Alexander, scoring 15 points each while Casey Fust added 13 and a team-high seven rebounds.
 
The Beacons return home from their short two-game season-opening trek to Southern California, and will play host to No. 21 Rocky Mountain College (2-2) on Saturday at 3:00 pm. Bushnell will also be hosting a neutral-site match between Rocky Mountain and Multnomah on Friday evening at 6:00 pm.