by Alex Davis

When the Bushnell Beacons faced off against Evergreen State on Dec. 30, they squeaked by with a 59-58 win against the team hailing from Olympia, Wash. Clearly, the new year has changed something in Eugene as the Beacons were able to overcome a second-half slump (Bushnell had a 23% field goal percentage during the 3rd quarter) to beat the Geoducks 68-48.

They were of course led by star Senior Forward Kalina Rojas, who posted a career-high 17 points, during the first half. She credited her and her teammate’s conditioning and recovery to be able to win despite playing 5 games in 8 days. Rojas stated on her standout performance that “I’ve accepted the role of looking for open shots.” Coach Chad Meadors reveled in talking about his star Senior player saying that “If you leave Kalina open from 15 feet, she’s gonna knock it down.”

After the game Coach Meadors credited the Beacon’s ability to maintain their lead during the second half to setting up on-ball screens for Aly Mirabile. The Junior guard finished with 13 points and 3 rebounds.

For the Geoducks, their 3rd quarter effort to take over the contest just simply fell short despite a valiant effort from their Sophmore star Jalyn Sackrider. She finished the contest with 18 points and 4 fouls.