Oregon State Takes Down San Francisco 74-65 in West Coast Conference Opener

The San Francisco Dons gave the Oregon State women quite a battle in the Beavers' West Coast Conference opener, but some big shooting form Jenna Villa and clutch closing minutes from Kennedie Shuler gave Oregon State a 74-65 win. The Beavers are now 9-5 on the season, and 1-0 in the WCC.

The Beavers were challenged early, as San Francisco managed to hold onto a slim lead for most of the first quarter. Aina Cargol was key to the Dons scoring, putting the first points of the day on the board, and hitting a three to give San Francisco a three point lead with less than a minute to go in the quarter. Lara Alonso managed to match Cargol's bucket, but a pair of free throws from Candy Edokpaigbe put the Dons up two after the first.

A hookshot from Lizzy Williamson and a layup from Kennedie Shuler put the Beavers in front at the start of the second quarter. Shuler and Jenna Villa got the Beavers on a run, combining for 15 points and helping Oregon State build a ten point, 39-29 halftime lead.

San Francisco came out of the locker room hot. Threes from Mara Neira and Aina Cargol cut into the Beaver lead. A pair of free throws from Candy Edokpaigbe got the Dons within one with 5 minutes left in the quarter. A block from Nene Sow kept the Beavers in front, and then back to back threes from Ally Schimel got Oregon State some breathing room. Oregon State managed to hang onto a four point, 51-47 lead headed into the final quarter.

The Dons kept the pressure on at the start of the fourth, with a layup from Meghan Mcintyre tying the game with 7:33 left on the clock. Mcintyre then gave San Francisco their first lead since the first quarter with another layup,

Jenna Villa put the Beavers back in front with a three. Oregon State managed to hang on to a slim lead entering the final minute of the game, aided by consistent free throw shooting from Villa and Shuler. They couldn't get any separation from the Dons though, with a pair of free throws from Noelia Mourino cutting the lead to two with two minutes to go.

Oregon State went to their surest hand to secure the win, with a pair of driving layups from Kennedie Shuler getting the Beaver lead back to six. San Francisco was forced to send the Beavers to the foul line, and their shooting was enough to hang on to a 74-65 win.

Jenna Villa led the Beavers in scoring, with 24 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists. Kennedie Shuler finished with 19 points, 5 reboudns and 4 assists. No other Beaver broke into double digits in scoring, but Ally Schimel was three for three from beyond the arc to finish the day with 9 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists.

Oregon State has a day off before they'll be back in action. They'll stay on the road in California to take on Saint Mary's on Tuesday, December 30th. Tip off is set for 6 PM PT.