ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Coming out of the gate with a 27-14 opening quarter, the Montana State University Billings women's basketball team took the lead and never looked back Thursday night at Nicholson Pavilion to hand host Central Washington University a 78-58 loss in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
 
The Yellowjackets opened the game on an 11-2 run that turned into a 17-5 lead, and held the command from start-to-finish in their second straight victory. MSUB leapt past Central Washington back into fourth place in the GNAC standings at 10-6 in league play, and the 'Jackets are now 17-5 overall on the season.
 
"I was very pleased with our start tonight, and our first group was really locked in," said MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin. "They did a great job on both ends of the floor and we were moving the ball really well. We had good spacing on offense, and defensively we did a good job early in the game of limiting (Jasmin) Edwards."
 
Junior Vanessa Stavish tied her career high with five 3-pointers on the night, and finished one away from her career best with 17 points while adding six rebounds. Alisha Breen had her 12th double-double of the year, with a gritty 21-point, 16-rebound effort in 38 minutes. Rylee Kane was also in double figures for MSUB with 16 points, and she led all players with seven assists in 33 minutes.
 
CWU meanwhile fell to 14-10 with the loss, and slipped to fifth place in the conference standings at 10-6 in GNAC play. Kaelie Flores led the Wildcats with a dozen points, while Alexis Pana had 11. Senior point guard Jasmin Edwards led the team with five assists, while also scoring eight points, grabbing five boards, and coming up with three steals in 37 minutes.
 
The Wildcats shot just 2-for-15 from 3-point range in the game, as the 'Jackets closed down the arc all night long. CWU managed a 14-11 burst in the second quarter, but the 'Jackets held on to a 10-point advantage at halftime. Rachel Koehler helped provide a spark off the bench for MSUB, making a difference in the rebounding department particularly in the opening half.
 
The game was finalized in the third period, when MSUB out-scored CWU 25-13 and built an insurmountable 20-point advantage. The 'Jackets burst out of the locker room on a 13-6 run, and by the end of the third period the lead was 63-41.
 
"They chipped away a bit in the second quarter, but the third was the second key to the game," said Woodin. "After halftime our players started well and played a complete quarter to build the lead to 20 points. I was really proud of our effort to start each half tonight."
 
Stavish made 6 of 13 shots overall in the game, and also had an assist and a block in 25 big minutes. The 'Jackets made an 8-for-25 night from the arc (32.0 percent) hold up, as Stavish had five of those makes. Overall the 'Jackets shot 39.7 percent from the field (27-for-68) and made 16 of 22 foul shots (72.7 percent).
 
"Vanessa was very good from the 3-point line, and she is a threat from long range," Woodin commented on the junior's shooting ability. "She had the green light tonight, and she delivered. Both Alisha and Rylee were really effective, and Alisha was really tough on the boards all night. Rylee played a very good floor game."
 
CWU finished the night at 28.1 percent overall (18-for-64), and made 20 of 28 free throws (71.4 percent) alongside the poor shooting from distance. MSUB won the rebounding battle 51-44, but CWU generated 16 MSUB turnovers with 10 steals in the game.
 
"We won the 3-point game, and when we do that we have a good chance to win," said Woodin. "I was really proud of our overall team defense, and our players gave a very determined effort tonight. I am proud of them for getting this win on the road."
 
THE BUZZ: Stavish was picked as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…MSUB is 24-11 all-time against CWU and is 10-6 in away games…the 'Jackets swept the season series against the 'Cats after an 86-84 win in Billings on Jan. 13…Breen reached 1,700 points in her career, and moved up one spot to No. 6 in GNAC history with 1,707 total…Breen moved to No. 5 in GNAC history with 769 career rebounds…Breen was 10-for-11 from the foul line, marking the eighth 10-free throw game of her career which is tied for third most in GNAC history…Kane moved to No. 5 in GNAC history with 113 career starts, and No. 5 in career assists with 507.
 
NEXT UP: MSUB continues GNAC play on the road, taking on second-place Northwest Nazarene University on Saturday night in Nampa, Idaho. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. Mountain time at the Johnson Sports Center, and live video with play-by-play commentary and live statistics will be available online through the MSUB Stretch Internet portal here.