Box Score
 
CHICAGO – Every player on the NJIT roster appeared in the final boxscore Thursday as third-seeded NJIT topped sixth-seeded Houston Baptist, 61-42, in the opening round of the 2012 Great West Conference women's basketball championship tournament hosted by Chicago State at the Emil and Patricia A. Jones Convocation Center.
 
The Highlanders (13-16) were led by two double-figure scorers Thursday.  Rayven Johnson, who was named to the all-GWC first-team Wednesday at the annual awards banquet, paced the Highlanders with 13 points and six rebounds in 16 minutes of action.  Johnson knocked down 2-of-3 from three-point range.
 
NJIT's other double-figure scorer was Sarah Olson with 12 points as the freshman guard shot 4-of-10 from beyond the arc in 17 minutes of action.
 
Center Nicole Maticka, who was recognized as all-GWC honorable mention, combined for nine points and seven rebounds while freshman Martina Matejcikova added seven points and pulled down a career-high nine rebounds off the bench for NJIT.
 
NJIT guards Melanie Griffin and Kimberly Dweck dished out a game-high six assists apiece.  Griffin matched her personal-best.
 
Houston Baptist (1-27) got a game-high 16 points from Tayler Jefferson, while Joselyn Pugh added 11 points and seven rebounds.
 
NJIT, with back-to-back wins, advances to face second-seeded Utah Valley (14-14 overall) in Friday's semifinal game at 5pm (CT).
 
Utah Valley and the Highlanders split the regular season with the Wolverines defeating NJIT, 61-54 in Newark and the Highlanders returning the favor in Orem with a 48-46 victory.
 
Olson scored the game's first points on a three-pointer and the Highlanders took an early 8-4 lead on a jumper by point guard Alyssa Albanese.
 
The Huskies pulled to within one of NJIT, 8-7, on a three-pointer by Maisie Elston but the Highlanders went on a 5-2 run, increasing its lead to six, 15-9, with 12:07 remaining. Maticka had all five points for NJIT.
 
Just under the 12-minute media, NJIT scored 13 unanswered points taking a 27-9 lead with 6:50 left.  Huskies Mollye Mlcak broke the ice hitting one of two from the free throw line.
 
NJIT then went on a quick 6-2 run pushing the Highlander lead to 20, on a layup by Matejcikova, 33-13, with three minutes remaining.
 
The Highlanders headed into the locker room with a 35-15 halftime lead.  As a team, NJIT shot 14-for-29 from the field (48 percent) and 6-of-12 from 3-point range (50 percent) in the first half.  Johnson was the game leader after the first 20 minutes with 13 points.
 
NJIT took its largest lead of the contest, as the Highlanders opened up the second half on a 13-7 spurt, for a 48-22 lead, after a three-pointer by Kimberly Dweck, at the 12:27 mark.
 
The Huskies rallied back to score the next 11 points slimming the Highlander lead to 18, 51-33, on a layup by Pugh.  Houston Baptist's Jefferson had five points while Pugh had four in the run.
 
Junior Jelena Zoric broke the Highlanders scoring streak by sinking a three-pointer from the left corner, increasing the Highlander lead to 21, 54-35, with five minutes left to go.
 
The Huskies went on a 7-3 spurt in a span of 2:35 after a three-pointer by Elston, trimming the lead to 17, the closet the Huskies would get to the Highlanders.