Big Bend take consolation from Green River tourney

AUBURN - After a tough start to their run in the Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges (NWAACC) Crossover Tournament at Green River Community College, the Big Bend Lady Vikings found their groove in the nick of time.

By doing so, the Lady Vikings ended the tournament with two consecutive wins and the consolation title.

On Sunday, Big Bend (5-3) defeated North Seattle CC, 72-55 to claim their prize.

The Vikings clinched the win early, behind a strong first half, en route to a 47-27 lead at halftime.

From there they found a way to hold on despite some sluggish stretches.

We played a great first half, but we came out and had another anemic shooting performance hitting only 23 percent of our shots in the second half," Lady Vikings head coach Preston Wilks said. "Our poor shooting caused them to get within 10 points at one point which really got NSCC excited and they were playing really well and turned up the pressure.  We turned the ball over too many times against this pressure."

Big Bend shot 34 percent from the field and were led by Brin Neff's 18 points and Ali Nielsen scored 13 points to lead the way.

The Lady Vikings also forced 35 turnovers to help offset their own 27 miscues.

All 12 players on the roster played at least eight minutes and every one scored.

"On the positive side, it was good for our team to go up against this type of pressure which will hopefully prepare us for our league games," Wilks said.

The previous day, Big Bend defeated Pierce College, 90-62 in the consolation semifinals.

Big Bend led 46-32 at halftime as they outscored Pierce by 14 points in each half.

Despite the nice lead at the break, Wilks was not too impressed with his team's play.

"We came out very tentative, considering our play from the prior day," Wilks said. "But in the second half we regained our confidence."

Big Bend's bench was key in the win, outscoring Pierce's 47-16, while they also outrebounded their opponents 53-48 and forced 34 turnovers.

Nielsen led the way with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Dayanna Lopez (Quincy High School), Ashley McGowan, and Neff all scored 12 points apiece and Chayla Hirz (Moses Lake High School) chipped in with 10 points.

Neff also had a team-high six assists and four steals.

Wilks' squad got put into the consolation bracket by virtue of their 75-52 first round loss to Southwest Oregon CC on Friday.

Big Bend trailed 17-2 out of the gate, cut the gap to six late in the first half, before SWOCC pulled away after halftime.

Tiffany Morris (Moses Lake High School), Leslie Brown (Royal High School), and Shelby Scott, all tied for high scoring honors with eight points apiece.

McGowan and Brown led the squad with seven rebounds apiece.

"As good as our team looked against Chemeketa a week prior, we looked as inexperienced as we have all year in this game," Wilks said. "But I do have to emphasize that this SWOCC team has beaten some good teams this year, and they were listed in the 1st NWAACC poll.  I was glad to have played a quality team, which is what we will face every night in the East Region when our league play starts."

The Lady Vikings travel to Edmonds Monday to take part in the Edmonds CC Winter Classic.