BILLINGS, Mont.  – This time the shot didn't go MSUB's way. After winning on a last minute shot at Western Oregon in their previous game, on Thursday's special Think Pink game in Alterowitz, MSU Billings couldn't come up with the final basket in a tight battle falling, 71-69.
 
Quinn Peoples and Kayleen Goggins combined for 46 points on the night. Peoples was just shy of a double-double with 23 total points, six 3-point shots, 3-3 from the free-throw line and nine rebounds. Her 23 points tied her career-high, which she has now done four times for MSUB.
 
Goggins also had 23 total points, was 10-17 from the field and had three steals. This is her fifth game in-a-row with 20-plus points.
 
Montana State University Billings now drops to 13-12 overall and 5-10 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. With the win, Western Oregon moves to 7-16, 4-11 GNAC.
 
The Yellowjackets dug themselves a nine-point, 34-25, deficit at halftime, stretching to 12 in the second half. MSUB fought back and was able to regain the lead with 2:23 remaining in the game, but WOU's Jordan Mottershaw hit the winning shot with 12 seconds left in the game.
 
"Western Oregon played great as a team and we had a hard time stopping Mottershaw and Goularte tonight," MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin said. "We were able to beat them at the buzzer at their place last month, so I wasn't surprised this game was close too. Give them a lot of credit, they made key plays when they needed to." 
 
Peoples opened up the game scoring a deep 3-pointer for MSUB. A layup from Goggins added two more. WOU's Dana Goularte got into the game with a layup. The Yellowjackets' Annie DePuydt answered with her own 3-pointer and on the next possession, DePuydt made a great move to the basket, with a jump-shot to tie the game at 10-all with 12:20 left in the first half.
 
In the last six minutes of the half, Western Oregon made a 15-7 run to take a nine-point lead into the break. The Wolves took a 4-point lead on a short jump-shot from Mottershaw with five minutes remaining. Goggins was fouled on the next MSUB possession, and she made one to close the gap to three, 21-18, but Western Oregon continued to keep the pressure on as the Wolves made the last six points to end the half ahead.
 
"I felt we lost the game in the first half," Coach Woodin said. "We played tight and made a lot of careless errors, especially on the offensive end. I did feel we played better in the second half and we fought hard to get back in the game. Both teams made some big plays down the stretch and they made one more shot than us which was the difference."
 
After WOU took a 12-point lead in the second half, MSU Billings responded with a dramatic 12-0 run of their own to tie the game at 45-45 with 12:26 left in the game. Goggins started it with a layup on the inbounds pass, then DePuydt made another short jumper. MSUB added back-to-back 3-pointers as Peoples hit her fourth 3-pointer of the game and after a turnover from WOU, Goggins made her first bucket from downtown, to draw the Yellowjackets to within two, 45-43.
 
MSUB's Alisha Breen made it a tie game when on a layup attempt she was fouled, but made both of her free-throws to tie the game at 45.
 
The Wolves continued with the pressure, scoring the next four points before MSUB came back. Breen made four straight free-throws to again give the Yellowjackets the lead, 51-50.
 
Into the final minutes, the score remained close. WOU took a 3-point lead at 1:35, 67-64, but Peoples with her sixth 3-pointer of the night, made it a tie game. A layup from WOU's Sydney Azorr gave the Wolves the lead back, but Goggins connected with her own layup to knot the score at 69-69.
 
Mottershaw was able to finish the game on a layup with 12 seconds remaining and MSUB was unable to find a last-second shot of its own.
 
Goularte finished with a game-high 24 points, while Mottershaw had 23.
 
Turnovers were a big factor in the game tonight. Western Oregon committed 15, and MSUB 18, but the Wolves were able to convert for 23 points while MSU Billings was held to 12. For the game, Western Oregon was 29-54 and 53.7 percent overall shooting, while the Yellowjackets made 23-54 for 42.6 percent shooting. Western Oregon was 7-12 from the free-throw line, while MSUB was 15-21 for 71.4 percent. MSU Billings finished with 27 rebounds, while Western Oregon pulled down 25.
 
"Our seniors played their hearts out tonight," Woodin said. "I was especially proud of Quinn Peoples. She really came to play tonight and gave an awesome effort. Kayleen Goggins was very effective too and Annie DePuydt played solid."
 
DePuydt finished with seven points. Breen had 12 total points, 10 of them from the free-throw line, while dishing out a team-high four assists.
 
Peoples was tonight's St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game.
 
"We have another important game against St. Martin's on Saturday," Coach Woodin said. "They are a very good team who is fundamentally sound. We will also honor our three very special seniors after the game. It has been a privilege for me to work with them and I hope we can put together a great effort to honor them both on and off the court."
 
UP NEXT: MSU Billings hosts Saint Martin's on Saturday, Feb. 21, at 7 p.m. Saturday's game is the last regular season home game for MSUB and following the conclusion of the contests, a short ceremony will take place honoring the three seniors on the team: Kayleen Goggins, Quinn Peoples, and Annie DePuydt.
 
Note: Tonight was Think Pink night in Alterowitz. All women were admitted free to the game. Proceeds from a 50/50 raffle and t-shirt sales will all benefit the St. Vincent Healthcare Foundation's EVA Project – a nonprofit organization that provides free mammograms to uninsured or underinsured women in the local area. The Montana State University Billings athletic department would like to thank all those who helped support tonight's events.