Lindsey Branch, UMW Sports Information photo credit Terri Haverfield
DILLON, Mont. – The Montana Western women's basketball team (12-10, 4-5) fell in a conference matchup to the Montana Tech Orediggers (11-11, 2-7) by a final score of 76-66.
After holding a narrow 52-51 lead heading into the final quarter, the Bulldogs were outscored 25-14 in the final frame as the Orediggers shot 60 percent from the field.
How It Happened
Western got off to a rocky start, going 1-10 from the field and an uncharacteristic 0-7 performance from the arc. With just over two minutes on the clock, Shainy Mack found the hoop on a three from the corner to break the Oredigger 11-0 run and shake the Bulldog offense awake.
The Bulldogs flipped the momentum and hit the final points of the quarter, trailing 16-11 heading into the second frame.
Isabella Lund made a contested layup, drawing a foul from MT's Aubrie Rademacher to make it a three-point play. She would continue to bring the energy for the Bulldogs, racking up four points and a steal in the comeback effort.
Payton Hagy banged a three and Jordan Sweeney knocked down a mid-range jumper to give UMW their largest lead of the game at 26-20 with 5:42 left until half. Montana Tech answered quickly and found some momentum behind a pair of threes from Brooklynn Hankwitz. The Orediggers took a narrow 34-32 lead into the break.
Despite a quick three from Mack to start the third, the Orediggers went on a 10-0 run to create some space between the two teams. Despite the gap, Western fought to close the gap and took a narrow 52-51 lead following a buzzer beating three from Sweeney.
The Bulldogs continued their run, riding a 16-0 run into the fourth and jumping out to a 57-51 lead. After leading 62-58 with five to go, Montana Tech shut down UMW for the remainder of the game. Moy and Sweeney combined for UMW's lone points across the final five minutes as the Orediggers ran on to finish the game on top 76-66.
Notables
The Orediggers shot above their season average of 33.2 percent as they went 50.9 percent from the field. The Bulldogs struggled behind a below average 37.9 percent from the field.
Sweeney went off, hitting three triples and totaled 22 points on the day. She also added four rebounds, three assists, and a pair of steals.
Mack followed with 14 points, hitting three triples and adding three steals.
Moy totaled seven rebounds and had the Bulldogs' lone block of the game.
Up Next
Montana Western moves to 4-5 in conference play and will be hitting the road for a game against Rocky Mountain College next Thursday Feb. 8. Tip-off is at 5pm MT.
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