ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Hawai'i Pacific University came back from a 17-point halftime deficit to defeat host Central Washington 77-70 in the Wildcat Thanksgiving Classic at Nicholson Pavilion Saturday afternoon.
 
The Sharks (2-2) won both games in the Wildcat Thanksgiving Classic, while the Wildcats (4-4) lost both games and three of their last four contests.
 
Senior VeAnne Navarro, a 5-6 guard from Modesto, Calif./Modesto Christian, led the Sharks once again in Washington, scoring 21 points with four rebounds. Navarro hit 6-of-13 from the floor, 2-of-6 from the 3-point arc and all seven of her free throws.
 
Senior Cece Pearl, a 5-11 forward from Peoria, Ariz./Peoria, once again came off the bench with 13 points and seven rebounds, while sophmore Janessa Manzano, a 5-8 guard from San Francisco, Calif./St. Ignatius added 10 points. Forward Breanna Mackenzie, a 5-9 junior from Melbourne, Australia/Box Hill joined Pearl with seven rebounds to lead the Sharks.
 
CWU was paced by Jasmin Edwards with 20 points and six assists, while Taylor Baird and Kortney Grattic each added 18 points. JonNae Richardson grabbed 10 rebounds for game-high honors.
 
HPU shot only 28 percent in the first two quarters and trailed CWU by 17, 38-21 at the half.
 
The Sharks made their move in the third quarter. Down 42-27 with 7:20 to play in the period, the Sharks got a layup by junior Jessi Reeves, a 5-11 forward from Coffs Harbour, Australia/John Paul, and a jumper from Mackenzie to key a 16-0 run and take the lead on a 3-pointer by Manzano.
 
Edwards answered with a layup for CWU to retake the lead at 44-43.  HPU took it back with a layup and free throw by Pearl with 25 seconds left in the quarter and never trailed again.
 
Hawai'i Pacific opened the final quarter with a personal 9-0 run by Navarro who put in two layups, hit a 3-pointer and two free throws in the first 2:35 for a 55-44 advantage.
 
The Sharks extended the lead to 14 on a 3-pointer by Manzano, but the Wildcats had one last charge remaining. Coming out of the media timeout with 4:52 to play, Grattic's layup for CWU started a 14-4 run that left HPU with a 65-61 lead with 1:47 to play.
 
HPU retook command with a traditional 3-point play on a layup and free throw by Navarro with 1:24 to go. She then hit a pair of free throws with 1:10 left for a 5-0 run. The Sharks maintained their advantage through the final minute connecting on 7-of-8 free throws (6-of-6 in the last 36 seconds).
 
HPU shot 56 percent from the floor in the third quarter and 78 percent in the fourth to finish at 44 percent (25-of-57).  The Sharks canned 8-of-23 from the arc (5-of-8 in the second half), and 19-of-23 from the foul line (all in the second half).
 
CWU shot 45 percent from the floor (25-of-56), but only 38 percent in the second half. The Wildcats hit 6-of-20 from the arc and 14-of-18 from the charity stripe. The Wildcats had a narrow 33-32 advantage on the boards.
 
After playing their first four games away from Honolulu, the Sharks play in front of a home crowd for the first time next Friday when they host Hawai'i-Hilo downtown at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center. Tipoff is slated for 4:30 p.m.