GUNNISON, Colo.  Western Colorado ran away from visiting Westminster (Utah) University in the second and third quarters Saturday afternoon, led by a trio of Mountaineers that scored in double figures during a 68-58 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference women's basketball win at Paul Wright Gym.

Jayda Maves led all players with 19 points and contributed a double-double after coming away with a career-high 13 rebounds – her points total also equaling a single-game career mark. Alyssa Eckroth added in a career-best 17-point game with Ivey Schmidt chipping in with 13 points.

JUST THE FACTS
Final score: Western def. Westminster, 68-58
Records: Western 6-14 overall (3-11 RMAC), Westminster 3-20 (1-14)
Location: Paul Wright Gym, Gunnison, Colo.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Schmidt made the second of two free throws in the final minute of the first quarter, lifting the Mountaineers into an 11-10 advantage that would never again be relinquished.
• The game changed dramatically in the final minutes of the second quarter as the Mountaineers went on a run to break away from a narrow 18-16 lead.
• Maves first knocked down a 3-pointer to light the fire, and Natalie Jojola hit her own trey the next time down the court after pulling down a defensive rebound at the other end.
• A Westminster ball-handling error evolved into another Maves 3-pointer and after she picked up one of her rebounds in the defensive end Maves hit a soft jumper from in the paint to end the 11-0 run and grow the Griffins' deficit to 13, at 29-16.
• The Mountaineers' 31-20 lead at the halftime break ballooned even more in the third frame, outscoring Westminster by 10 to enter the final quarter leading by 21 (53-32).
• The advantage in that final period was 19 points with four minutes remaining when the Griffins would make a stab at a come-back, but they only got halfway there by the time the final horn sounded as Western earned a 10-point win that is its third victory in the past five games.

COURT NOTES

• Maves' big numbers were evident in her point differential when the freshman was on the court. She played a few seconds more than 33 minutes, and during that time Western outscored the Griffins by 24 points.
• Eckroth's career scoring night included a pair of 3-pointers along with hitting 5 of 6 from the free throw line.
• Jojola's seven rebounds trailed only Maves for Western, while Brooklyn Seymour and Erika Lane both added six rebounds apiece.
• For the night, the Mountaineers shot 40 percent from the floor and 70% from the charity stripe, and they played with the lead for 31 minutes and 38 seconds compared to just the Griffins' 2:35 of game time in front on the scoreboard.

UP NEXT
Western continues its RMAC homestand with the next two games on the schedule, hosting Chadron State College on Fri., Feb. 9, followed by a match-up with Colorado Christian University the next day.