Box Score SALT LAKE CITY – The fifth-ranked Westminster College women's basketball team picked up their first win of the season in a defensive struggle against No. 12 Biola (Calif.), 55-45, on Friday night in the Behnken Field House.
Neither team managed much offense in the game as Westminster (1-1) shot just 35.7 percent from the floor while Biola (1-2) made just 36.4 percent of their attempts. Westminster forced the Eagles into 18 turnovers and scored 19 points from them while committing just nine turnovers themselves.
Nicole Yazzie carried much of the scoring load for the Griffins as she finished with a career-high 28 points. The senior went 7-of-16 from the floor with four threes, all in the first half. Yazzie was active in other ways as well with seven rebounds, five steals and two assists while also going 10-of-13 at the foul line.
Cyndey Tibbitts added 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting with four rebounds and four assists.
Kelsi Wells chipped in seven points and seven boards with
Brooke Larsen and
Brooke Blonquist scoring five and four points respectively.
Adijat Adams led Biola with 13 points and six rebounds. The Eagles outrebounded the Griffins 35-27 and had 10 offensive rebounds.
The defenses really controlled the game early as neither team could reach double figures until Aubree Mittel knocked down a three for Biola to put them ahead 11-8 at the 6:53 mark of the first half. A Yazzie three at the 4:42 mark of the second started started a 21-7 run for the Griffins that ended with them holding a 29-18 advantage with 19:01 to play in the game.
Biola continued to chip away at the deficit and when Adams scored on a layup with 3:58 to play, Westminster held a 45-43 advantage. The Griffins would close the game out with a 10-2 run over the final 3:02, anchored by 8-of-9 shooting at the foul line to seal the win.
Westminster will complete this three-game home stand on Saturday at 6 p.m. when they host College of Idaho. The Yotes have gone 2-0 in Salt Lake City this weekend and are 3-0 on the season. The game will be available live on Griffins TV and in Utah on Comcast 6.
