EWU enters win column with victory over Northwest Christian

EWU+freshman+guard+Jenna+Dick+looks+to+pass+to+the+post.+Dick+got+the+start+at+point+guard+Sunday+and+responded+by+scoring+a+career-high+17+points.

Mckenzie Ford for The Easterner

EWU freshman guard Jenna Dick looks to pass to the post. Dick got the start at point guard Sunday and responded by scoring a career-high 17 points.

By Drew Lawson, Sports Editor

It wasn’t pretty at times, but the EWU women’s basketball team (1-5) finally found the win column with an 81-62 victory over Northwest Christian University Sunday.

EWU was led by sophomore center Bella Cravens, who had her second straight double-double and finished with 16 points and 15 rebounds.

EWU endured an extremely sloppy first half in which the Eagles turned the ball over 12 times and NCU, an NAIA school, committed 13 turnovers. EWU trailed 31-30 at halftime.

“It was a rough first half in particular,” EWU head coach Wendy Schuller said. “We settled for a lot of shots.”

EWU finally woke up in the second half by feeding the ball to Cravens and using her post presence to free up three-point shooters. Cravens responded by scoring eight points and grabbing six rebounds in the period.

Cravens said she took it upon herself to bring EWU the energy it had lacked in the first half.

“In the first half we were stagnant,” Cravens said. “I think we needed somebody to fire the team up, and I feel like with going inside for quick scores or (getting) really big boards, that in itself fires the team up.”

Mckenzie Ford for The Easterner
EWU sophomore center Bella Cravens wins the opening tip-off. Cravens scored 16 points and snared 15 boards in EWU’s 81-62 win over NCU Sunday.

Schuller said the offense works more effectively when it feeds the post and uses that to open up shots for shooters. EWU scored 51 points and shot 57.6% from the field after intermission.

The Eagles received contributions from freshman guard Jenna Dick, who scored a career-high 17 points. Sophomore guard Jessica McDowell-White had a double-double with 13 points and 12 assists, while freshman wing Kennedy Dickie added a career-high 15 points.

Dick started in place of junior guard Brittany Klaman, who didn’t play. EWU said she is not currently with the team, but declined to comment further. Klaman is expected to eventually return to the team.

EWU returns home next week to take on Boise State University. Tip-off from Reese Court is at 1:05 p.m.