LAKEWOOD, CO- The Cougars returned home on a snowy night for a matchup with Black Hills State inside the CCU Event Center on Saturday. Led by an excellent fourth quarter offensively and strong defense throughout, Colorado Christian came away with an important 75-62 victory. 

Agnes Paul got the scoring started, putting in an early layup. Paul converted yet another layup, and Regan LoConte tied things at 6 with a layup. The Yellowjackets close the quarter well, leading 18-14 heading to the second. 

Nicole Bowlin immediately got the scoring going in the second, drilling a three-pointer followed by a pair of layups from Paul and LoConte. LoConte then hit a three to give her team the lead, and four straight free throws from Maggie Hutka sent the Cougars to the half leading 35-31. 

The third quarter was tight as the teams grappled for an advantage. A Bowlin three put the Cougars ahead by eight, and the two teams headed to the final period separated by just four points. 

In the fourth quarter, the defense put the clamps on and the offense caught fire. A three-point play from Hutka put CCU ahead by nine, and they never looked back. Another Bowlin three and a Dasiya Jones layup pushed the lead to 63-51, and Jones connected on a jumper to push the gap to 14. BHSU never got closer than nine after that point, as a strong closing sequence saw the Cougars claim an extremely important RMAC victory 75-62. 

Hutka paced the offense with a double-double on 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Bowlin poured in 19 points. Paul was stellar with 6 points and 9 rebounds on the night. 

Colorado Christian returns to action against Chadron State February 7 at home at 5 p.m. MST.