The Eastern Washington women are seen here with the Gator Holiday Classic trophy they won after scoring a big basketball victory, 67-56, beating host Florida, Monday, Dec. 22.
The Eastern Washington University women's basketball team will begin their chase of a Big Sky Conference title fresh from a huge victory Dec. 22 at the Gator Holiday Classic in Gainesville, Fla. after beating host Florida, 67-56.
The senior duo of Lexie Nelson, who led Eastern with 28 points, and Melissa Williams, who recorded double-doubles in each of the tournament games, were selected to the All-Tournament team.
The Eagles, 7-4 and with three consecutive wins, now take a break before beginning conference play on the road, Jan. 1 at Weber State.
"I thought we played great team basketball, as everyone really stepped up and did their job," EWU head coach Wendy Schuller said.
In the title game, the Eagles led 42-32 at halftime only to see the Gators close to within 44-39 near the midpoint of the second half. A 3-pointer from Nelson followed by layups from junior Hayley Hodgins and sophomore Tisha Phillips again put distance between the Eagles and Gators. Eastern had its largest lead, 51-39, with 10 minutes, 15 seconds to play.
Eastern shot 39.3 percent from the field, but were 44.4-percent in the second half. The Gators shot just 30 percent over the final 20 minutes, finishing with a 33.3 percent for the game. Eastern made eight 3-pointers while Florida had just three
"Defensively, we were very good this weekend," Schuller said. "We didn't shoot the ball as well as I know we can."
The game was the first-ever meeting between EWU and Florida (7-5). The victory also marked Eastern's first-ever victory over a Southeastern Conference foe in seven tries. Eastern's 7-4 record is its best mark since the 2004-05 season.
Eastern became the first school other than Florida to win the Gator Holiday Classic since High Point claimed the title in 2009, snapping a four-year streak by the Gators. The Eagles are just the fifth team other than Florida to win the title dating back to the tournament's inception in 1990.
Eastern reached the title game following a 55-42 victory over Georgia Southern University, Sunday, Dec. 21.
Against Georgia Southern Williams led all players with 16 points while freshman Delaney Hodgins finished with 12 points and a career-best 11 rebounds for a double-double.
Georgia Southern cut Eastern's lead to one, 30-29, just two minutes into the second half, but a jumper from senior Williams at the 16:14 mark ignited an 11-0 run over the next three minutes, bumping the Eagles' lead to 41-29.
Reader Comments(0)