PORTLAND, Ore. – The Bushnell women's basketball team dominated down low as starting post players Libby Mathis and Ellis Mastel combined for 38 points and 23 rebounds in  a 70-68 Cascade Collegiate Conference victory over Warner Pacific on Friday night.
 
The Beacons blasted out to a 10-1 lead to start the game, and never trailed, but the Knights didn't make it easy on the Beacons, especially in the second half. Bushnell held a 12-points lead with under three minutes remaining in the third period, only to see WPU claw their way back to within two before the final buzzer.
 
Bushnell (7-12, 6-7 CCC) shot 44.6% in the contest and out-rebounded Warner Pac, 40-30. The Beacons forced 20 turnovers, balancing out 19 of their own miscues in the game. The Knights (7-12, 4-9) shot 42% in the game and hit seven three-pointers.
 
Head Coach Chad Meadors said, "We rebounded well and shared the ball well tonight. We had a couple of lapses on offense execution wise that let them back into the game, but we were over 40% from the field for the first time in a long time and we found a way to win."
 
Mathis finished the night with her fifth straight double-double, accounting for 20 points and 14 boards. She had seven offensive rebounds. Mastel scored 18 and had 19 rebounds. Krupke added 14 points while freshman Lilli Williams (pictured) came in to score ten points with a team-high three steals. Williams and freshman Kyra Quinn each played 16 minutes off the bench.
 
"We got a huge lift tonight from Lilli and Kira defensively," said Meadors. "They were awesome, and especially for Lilli, it was great to see her hard work pay off as she hasn't been on the court in a while."
 
While the posts were getting it done for the Beacons, it was the guard play of Emily Fortin and Amalya Sales that helped the Knights stay in the game, combining for 48 points and seven three-pointers. Fortin led all scorers with 25, adding a team-high eight rebounds while Sales earned 23 points and three steals.
 
Meadors added, "They had a couple of guards that were hard to handle tonight, and they made us pay every time they were open. Fortunately, we did a great job on everyone else, and we held their second-leading scorer to zero points."
 
The Beacons return to action on Saturday afternoon, traveling across town to take on the Multnomah Campus of Jessup University for the last time at 3:00 pm. The Lions (6-13, 4-9) defeated Corban on Friday evening, 79-72.