Box Score

ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Northwest Nazarene women's basketball team kept their drive to the playoffs alive Saturday night.

Backs against the wall and on the road, the Crusaders came out fighting, building an early 11-3 lead on a Kate Cryderman layup with 5 minutes gone and never trailing, handing host Central Washington a 76-71 defeat in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action.

"I'm extremely happy for our team and the way they gutted out a road win against a tough, well-coached Central Washington team," NNU head women's basketball coach Ryan Bragdon said.

A Cryderman bucket with 6 ½ minutes remaining in the opening half stretched the lead to 31-21, and an Ellie Logan bucket in the final minute before halftime put the Crusaders (7-18, 5-11 GNAC) on top 46-31.

The Wildcats (11-13, 6-10) clawed back into the ballgame in the second half, and three times in the final 20 minutes whittled the NNU advantage down to a meager two points.

But each time the Crusaders responded, thwarting any attempts at a Central Washington comeback.

"We got some big stops at different times during the second half to halt some runs by them, which I think is a huge step forward for this team," said Bragdon.

"I also continue to be impressed with our poise and execution offensively and with the way we have been taking care of the ball," NNU's coach added. "All of this is very encouraging to build on for our future."
 

The Wildcats managed one last late push, closing to 74-71 down on a Courtney Johnson 3 in the final minute, but the Crusaders forced a turnover and then Lexi Tubbs knocked down two free throws, icing the victory.

A huge victory for NNU, which now sits one game out of the six-team GNAC playoff picture with two games remaining. The Crusaders close the season playing at St. Martin's on Thursday and at Western Oregon on Saturday.

Logan turned in her first career double-double in the win, scoring 22 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, while Taylor Simmons added 17 points, five steals and four assists.

Cryderman chipped in 14 points and Tubbs scored 12 to help the Crusaders to the win.

"This was a great team win with big contributions from each player that saw action," said Bragdon.