Cathrine Kraayeveld scored 19 of her 25 points in the second half as Oregon rallied from a deficit early in the second half to defeat Valparaiso 60-47 on Saturday in the opening round of the Women's Sports Foundation Classic held in Eugene, Ore.
Playing in front of 3,648 fans in both teams season opener, Valpo struggled from the floor over the first six minutes as the Ducks raced out to an 11-0 lead. The Crusaders missed their first ten shots of the game before Jamie Gutowski (Crown Point, Ind./Andrean H.S.) scored on a lay-in with 13:24 remaining in the half.
Valpo then caught fire and turned up the pressure defensively, notching an 11-2 run over 3:52 to close within two, 15-13 after a three-pointer by Carrie Myers (Stickleyville, Va./Lee H.S.). Oregon pushed the lead back to six, but back-to-back triples by Katie Boone (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove H.S.) tied the contest at 19 with 5:46 to play, and the game remained tied, 23-23, at halftime.
The Crusaders struck first in the second half on a tip-in by Jenna Stangler (St. Michael, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville H.S.). Oregon retook the lead, but Myers hit her second three of the game with 15:33 remaining to put Valpo in front 31-30. After Brandi Davis hit a three, Boone tied the game at 33 with a lay-in at the 14:46 mark, but that would be the last time the Crusaders would be tied.
The Ducks scored the next seven points, and after Tamra Braun (Savage, Minn./Prior Lake H.S.) cut the lead to three with a pair of baskets inside, Kraayeveld went to work. The senior scored Oregon's next 13 points, including three treys as the lead was pushed to 11, 53-42, with 4:46 to play.
Another 7-0 spurt pushed the lead to 60-44 with 2:30 to play, and the Ducks ran out the clock over the final minutes.
Kraayeveld led all scorers with 25 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the floor, along with grabbing 11 rebounds and blocking four shots.
Boone led the Crusaders with 14 points, including going 3-for-3 from outside the arc, while grabbing five boards and dishing out three assists. Stangler added eight points and tie for game-high hours grabbing 11 boards. Braun added eight points in her collegiate debut, while grabbing seven rebounds and tallying three blocks. Myers also scored eight points for Valpo.
Andrea Bills scored eight points and grabbed seven rebounds for Oregon (1-0), while Corrie Mizusawa dished out 13 assists.
Valpo (0-1) shot just 31.3% (20-for-64) from the floor, while Oregon shot 42.6% (26-for-61). Both teams struggled from the free throw line, as they each made just one of five attempts. Oregon outrebounded the Brown and Gold 42-39, but the Crusaders held a 17-13 advantage on the offensive glass. Both schools committed 14 turnovers, but the Ducks blocked seven Valpo shots.
The Crusaders will return to the hardcourt on Sunday afternoon in the consolation game of the Women's Sports Foundation Classic. Valpo will face Villanova, a 63-56 loser to #9/10 LSU, beginning at 2:30 p.m. CST.
