ELLENSBURG, Wash. — A rough second quarter doomed Montana State Billings on Friday in a 63-36 loss to Central Washington at the NCAA Division II West Region women's basketball tournament.
The game was tied 13-13 after the first quarter, but CWU broke away by outscoring the Yellowjackets 17-4 in the second stanza to take a 30-17 lead into intermission. The Wildcats then outpaced MSUB by 13 points — 24-11 in the third — to put the game out of reach.
MSU Billings, which qualified for the regional by winning the Great Northwest Athletic Conference tournament championship — the only No. 6 seed to do so. But the magic ran out against CWU, the Jackets' rival from the GNAC.
Fiona Snashall led three Wildcats players in double figures with 20 points. Capri Sims had a double-double of 15 points and 14 rebounds for Central Washington, while Annalee Coronado added 17 points.
The Yellowjackets were led by GNAC freshman of the year Cassie Chesnut, who finished with 11 points. Tailey Harris added eight points, but MSUB made just 13 of 55 field goals (23.6%) and connected on just two 3-pointers. Montana State Billings ended its season with a 20-15 record
