Jan. 26, 2006
Box Score
Ogden, UT--Led by Natalie Doma's 29-points and nine rebounds, Idaho State took an 82-81 overtime win over cross-state rival Weber State Thursday night at the Dee Events Center. The win marks the first victory for the Bengals in Ogden since the 2000-01 season, and the first-ever for ISU head coach Jon Newlee.
Idaho State ups its record to 9-10 overall, 3-2 in Big Sky play, while Weber State drops to 9-9 overall, 3-2 in league play.
"This one feels good," said Newlee. "I've never won here before and it feels great. This is a huge one for us. We worked so hard in practice this week. Everyone came in and contributed."
With the game tied 79-79 with 45 seconds left in overtime, Andrea Lightfoot hit a three-point field goal from the left side to put the Bengals up by three. Then, with 3.9 seconds on the clock, Laura Porter missed a three and Weber State got just two points at the buzzer, securing the win for the Bengals.
Idaho State controlled the first half, taking a 41-29 advantage into the break. The Bengals led by 12 points with 5:41 remaining in regulation before Weber State went on a 13-3 run to tie the game at 70.
Doma connected on 12-of-19 shots from the field to collect her season-high 29 points. The sophomore center was also just one rebound shy of her fourth double-double of the season with nine.
"Natalie played big for us tonight," Newlee said. "She took the ball hard to the basket and finished strong on every shot. She also made a couple of great skip passes that led to some outside shots for us."
Danica Boyce helped ISU with 14 points, while Andrea Lightfoot added 12. Jeni Boesel notched 10 points with nine rebounds. Boesel also hit a pair of clutch free throws to tie the game at 79 in overtime.
Joanna Hixon rounded out the scoring with nine points, while Jenna Brown came off the bench to add six. Michelle Grohs came off the bench to collect two points. Grohs also tallied two key blocks in overtime.
ISU connected on 47.8 percent of its shots from the field while limiting Weber State to a 42.9 percent clip. The Bengals were held to 7-of-29 shooting from long range. The Wildcats connected on 7-of-21 shots from beyond the arc.
Chelsey Warburton fronted Weber State with 22 points which included six three-point field goals. Sara Tuomi added 19 while Tashina Taylor put in 16.
The Bengals take the rest of the week off and will gear up for Montana State and Montana next week. ISU will travel to Bozeman to take on MSU on Feb. 2 at 7:05 p.m. The team will be back home for a Feb. 9 matchup with Northern Arizona.
