Box Score

MONMOUTH, Ore. — With the flip of a switch, the Crusaders turned on their game and in the process ended their woes on the road.

Down four points in the opening quarter, Northwest Nazarene caught fire and went on a 20-4 run, never looking back and rolling to a 63-51 win over host Western Oregon on Saturday night in Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball.

"It's great to get the 'road monkey' off our back!" NNU head women's basketball coach Ryan Bragdon said. "We got back to playing closer to our potential and gave a great effort."

Down 14-10 in the opening quarter, four straight free throws from McKenna Walker allowed NNU (6-10 overall, 4-6 GNAC) to tie the game at the end of the period.

A Danielle Jardine bucket put the Crusaders on top, then Walker tossed in a hoop-and-the-harm 3 before capping a 12-0 run with a 3-pointer as she scored 10 of her team-high 16 points in the surge.

"McKenna played the best game of her short career so far," Bragdon said. "Her offensive and defensive efforts contributed huge to that first-half lead."

An Ellie Logan bucket stretched NNU's advantage to 36-22 at halftime, and a Raquel Jardine layup made it 44-27 early in the second half.

The host Wolves (3-15, 2-8) managed to chip away some, but only got as close as 60-51 back in the final two minutes.

"It was huge for us to build that kind of lead in the second half," Bragdon said, adding, "our energy was great, and I'm proud of this full team win!"

Logan added 12 points and six rebounds in the win and Taylor Simmons had 10 points, four assists and three steals in the victory for the Crusaders, who snapped a 10-game skid away from the Johnson Sports Center.

NNU looks to stretch its road win streak to two games, now, as the Crusaders next play at Seattle Pacific on Thursday.