ANCHORAGE, Alas. – The MSU Billings women are going dancing.
A late 9-0 run propelled the Jackets past Seattle Pacific 71-61 Saturday night in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship game, giving the Jackets their first GNAC tournament title and an automatic berth into the NCAA Division 2 West Regionals.
MSUB trailed 59-54 with 5:00 to play before getting baskets from four different players over a 2:30 stretch to take the lead. The Falcons scored just two points over the final 5:10 as the Jackets scored 17 of the game’s last 19 points.
The game margin was never outside single digits. The Jackets’ largest lead was eight at 24-16 midway through the second quarter, while SPU’s biggest advantage was five points at two different times in the fourth quarter.
Alisha Breen led all scorers with 24 points and added nine rebounds. Rylee Kane scored 15, while freshman Hannah Collins added 13.
The Jackets now wait to see who and where they’ll play in the first round of the West Regional. The NCAA Division 2 Selection Show is Sunday night at 8 p.m. MST.
