BURNABY, B.C. – The Montana State University Billings women's basketball team showed off it's skill on the defensive end of the floor against Westmont College, collecting a 52-40 victory on day one of the GNAC/PacWest Crossover hosted at Simon Fraser University.
 
Despite some sluggish stretches offensively, the Yellowjackets (3-1) would dominate the Warriors (0-1) for nearly the entire contest on the defensive end of the floor. The 'Jackets would force 22 turnovers from Westmont in the game, including nine steals, while allowing the Warriors to make just three field goals across the second and third quarters.
 
"It was a great team win for us against a good Westmont team," said Yellowjacket head coach Kevin Woodin. "I thought we worked especially hard on the defensive end, denying long range shots and forcing 22 turnovers was key for us to pick up the win."
 
MSUB shot 31.5% in the game, but was boosted by a 33% mark from three-point range, where the 'Jackets knocked down seven triples. Aspen Giese and Dyauni Boyce tied for a team high 12 points, with Giese collecting six rebounds, four steals, and a block, while Boyce had four rebounds. Fellow seniors Kortney Nelson and Chloe Williams each had ten points. Nelson added six rebounds along with a pair of assists and steals, while Williams had three steals, two rebounds, and two assists. Layla Baumann added six points on a pair of three-point shots, while Kaitlin Grossman added two points, four rebounds, and an assist. The 'Jackets were also 11-12 from the free throw line,
 
The 'Jackets came out shooting in the early minutes of the first quarter, jumping out to a 12-5 lead behind four three-pointers heading into the first media timeout. But the Warriors would respond to close the half, finishing on a 10-0 run to hold a small lead heading into the second quarter. But the Yellowjackets would steal back momentum in the second quarter, locking in on the defensive side of the ball to allow Westmont to score just two points in the period, taking the lead back and heading into the half up 23-17.
 
"I thought we came out strong," said Woodin. "It was nice to make some early threes, but give Westmont a lot of credit for fighting back and taking a lead. We're still looking to find some consistency on the offensive end, we're still battling a few scoring droughts, but we recovered strong to have a good second quarter."
 
MSUB would continue its defensive dominance in the third quarter, allowing eight points and just two made shots from the Warriors in the quarter. The 'Jackets forced ten third quarter turnovers by Westmont, while outscoring the Warriors once more behind six clutch free throws to continue to grow their advantage. It would give them a solid cushion heading into the fourth quarter, where MSUB's four seniors would combine to score all of their 16 points across the final ten minutes, with the team's veteran leadership helping guide the Yellowjackets to victory.
 
"I thought we executed well down the stretch," Woodin said. "Shooting 10-10 from the free throw line in the second half was critical to us getting the victory, and our veteran players helped keep us calm and close down the game. We're looking forward to taking the momentum from this regional win into tomorrow's game."
 
The Westmont trio of Lisa Kiefer, Molly Garnand, and Kate Goostrey each scored ten points to lead the Warriors in scoring, with Kiefer adding ten rebounds, and Garnaud eight. The Yellowjackets allowed just three other players to score, holding Westmont to 34% shooting, and a 14.3% mark from beyond the arch.
 
THE BUZZ: Nelson was selected as the Intermountain Health Player of the Game… the 'Jackets are now allowing teams to score just 51.5 points per game on 33.2% shooting, and have held teams to under 50 points twice this season… Boyce moved past Michelle Lieber on MSUB's all-time scoring list in the game, with her 1,117 career points now ranking 23^rd in program history.
 
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets finish their early season trip up north with a matchup on Saturday, November 9 against Vanguard University. Tipoff at West Gym is scheduled for 2 PM MT (1 PM PT). Live video will be available here, while live statistics will be available here.