BUTTE -- Halle Haber and
Chloe Larsen scored 22 points apiece as the sixth-ranked Montana Tech women's basketball team topped No. 23 Oregon Tech, 88-77, Saturday afternoon inside Valley Bank Arena.
It was the Orediggers' fourth win over a ranked opponent so far this season.
Both teams came out swinging early. Montana Tech (6-0) jumped out to a 10-5 lead, but the Owls closed the gap to tie the game at 19 by first quarter's end. Haber scored seven of her 22 in the opening 10 minutes.
It was Oregon Tech (4-2) in the second period. The Owls started the quarter with an 11-4 run and led by as many as eight before Tech rallied just before halftime. The Orediggers mustered a 7-0 run just before halftime and trailed 38-35 midway through.
Montana Tech came out of the break with hot shooting, taking the lead on
Olivia Nielson's layup early in the quarter, which sparked an 11-0 Oredigger run. Haber's basket at the end of the third gave Tech its biggest lead of the game so far, 63-48.
Tech extended the lead to 20 points on
Hallie Neibauer's three-point play early in the fourth before the Owls began to close the gap. OIT trimmed the lead to eight with 1:09 to go in the game, but strong defense and Larsen's three-point play in the late going helped Tech carry the victory.
Nielson chipped in 14 points for Montana Tech, and Haber and Larsen grabbed nine and eight rebounds, respectively. Neibauer and
Brooke Badovinac scored nine points apiece for Tech.
Gabbie Gascon led the Owls with 21 points, shooting 7-for-9 from 3-point territory.
Montana Tech will take next week off before beginning Frontier Conference play Friday, November 27 at Montana Western.
Visit Montana Tech athletics' home online, GoDiggers.com, anytime for up-to-the-minute news and coverage of the Orediggers. Give Montana Tech athletics a like on Facebook, and follow the Orediggers on X and Instagram at @DiggerAthletics.
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