PORTLAND – Ashley Bolston, in her first action of the season, led all players with a game-high 17 points as the Vikings held on to defeated the Northwest University Eagles, 63-60, Saturday afternoon at the Pamplin Sports Center.
 
Northwest led by as much as 11 points in the second half and led by five at 56-51 with 3:40 left in the game. JR F Courtney West hit a jumper in the paint followed by a pair of free throws by Bolston and the Vikings trailed by just one with 3:09 remaining.
 
FR G Kylie Jimenez came up with a steal on the next possession, which led to a fast-break layup by JR G Sidney Rielly and the Vikings retook the lead at 57-56.
 
Jimenez hit a three-pointer the next time down the floor to go up 60-56. She then came up with a big block, which led to her own layup on the fast break to cap an 11-0 run by the Vikings, who led 62-56 with 1:52 remaining in the contest.
 
Northwest hit a pair of buckets to pull within two with just over a minute left. Bolston had a chance to ice the game with a pair of free throw attempts with nine seconds left. She missed the first but hit the second to make it a three-point game.
 
The Eagles had already hit 10 threes in the game so the Vikings knew they had to guard out three-point line. Northwest's Andie Kristianat, who had five three-pointers, threw up another one but it missed and the Vikings held on to win 63-60.
 
Bolston, who had missed the first eight games of the season due to injury, scored her 17 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the floor. She went 1-for-3 from distance and 6-of-7 at the line. She added four rebounds and three assists in 26 minutes of action.
 
Rielly added 16 points for the Vikings along with four rebounds and three assists in 35 minutes. After scoring just four points her last time out, Jimenez went 5-for-10 from the floor, including a pair of three pointers for 13 points. She also added a team-high five assists.
 
JR F Courtney West came closer to the Portland State career blocks record with three against the Eagles. She how has 115 for her career, three shy of the record. She added 10 points, going 5-for-9, and pulled down a team-high nine rebounds, including six on the offensive glass.
 
Bolston hit her first basket of the season, a three-pointer from the left wing, to give the Vikings the early lead. Portland State jumped out to an 8-0 lead before Northwest cut the lead to four, 10-6, at the media timeout in the first quarter. Brown hit a pair of free throws out of the break to put the Vikings up 12-6. After hitting four of their first five shots, the Vikings missed their next seven before a layup by Rielly gave them a 14-6 lead at the end of the first.
 
As the Vikings' shooting woes continued into the second quarter, Northwest got hot from behind the arc, hitting four of their first five threes of the quarter to take a 22-19 lead. Back-to-back threes by the Eagles extended their lead to 28-19, forcing Portland State to call a timeout with 3:14 left in the half.
 
A free throw by Rielly ended the Eagles' 12-0 run to make it 28-20. Rielly hit two more free-throws on the Vikings' next possession. She then got out on a fast break to pull within four at 28-24. A pair of late field goals by Northwest made it 32-24 at the break.
 
After a pair of early baskets gave the Eagles an 11-point lead early in the third quarter, the Viking started to cut into the lead. They went on an 8-2 run to cut the lead to 39-34 after Jimenez found Rielly on a fast break. Jimenez extended it to 10-2 on a mid-range jumper to make it 39-36 with just under three minutes remaining in the third.
 
The Vikings got a stop before Brown hit a three-pointer from the corner to tie the game at 39-39. After trading points, a late three-pointer by the Eagles made it a 44-41 game heading to the fourth quarter.
 
After shooting under 30-percent in the first half, the Vikings shot .444 (8-for-18) in the third quarter to pull within three.
 
The Vikings tied the game it at 44-44 with three free throws to open the fourth. Northwest kept shooting from deep and keep hitting. They went on a 7-0 run to go up 51-44, which forced Portland State to call a timeout with 7:08 left in the game.
 
After trading baskets, Northwest went up by nine at 55-46. The Vikings cut the lead to four on a Bolston jumper and a three-pointer from Rielly. After a Northwest free throw, a jumper by West in the paint off an offensive rebound made it 56-53 with 3:27 left in regulation. It was the start of an 11-0 run that would give the Vikings a six-point lead at 62-56.
 
A Bolston free throw with nine seconds left put the Vikings up three at 63-60. Northwest threw up a last-second three-pointer, which missed as the Vikings picked up the three-point win.
 
Kristinat led the Eagles with 16 points, going 5-for-13 from the floor, all three pointers. Miranda Langenhorst added a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 12 rebounds in the loss.
 
The Vikings are off until next Saturday, Dec. 16 when they take on the UC Irvine Anteaters in Irvine, Calif. It will be the final non-conference road game for the Vikings.
 
NOTES:

• JR G Ashley Bolston made her season debut after missing the first eight games due to injury.
• Bolston led all players with 17 points on 5-for-12 shooting.
• Portland State had four starters score in double-figures.