Oregon fired the first shot in the basketball variety of the Civil War Saturday afternoon with a 76-72 conquest at Gill Coliseum. Taylor Lilley's 21 points led the Ducks and freshman post Ellyce Ironmonger supplemented her 10 points and eight rebounds with a journeyman's workday setting inside screens that opened the lane for Oregon's 10 second half lay-ups.

Micaela Cocks and Tamika Nurse combined for 25 effective points on 7/12 from the floor including a perfect four for four from distance, a performance that would serve the Ducks well over the rest of the conference schedule. If they are able to consistently find such outside points, this could be a very dangerous team... soon.

The game was closely contested with 16 lead changes, but it was the Ducks who mostly dictated the game's ebb and flow. The Ducks opened with a flurry building a six point lead but the Beavers tied the game at 13 and neither team would gain much of an advantage until the closing minutes of the first half when Oregon broke a 31-31 tie with four straight points before the break.

Oregon extended the lead to seven early in the second half but again the Beavers responded to tie at 40 and the game remained a see-saw affair. Tamika Nurse's trey with 6:25 remaining pushed the lead back to seven for the Ducks but by the three minute mark the game was tied again at 62. A lay-up by Nurse and a three pointer from Cocks pushed the lead to five and the Ducks were able to follow the heady play of Kaela Chapdelaine - who had a block, a lay-up and two rebounds in the games closing two minutes - to keep the Beavers at arm's length the rest of the way.

"I am very proud of our team and the character they showed," said head coach Bev Smith "Our team won today with poise. They didn't get too high or too low when Oregon State fought back."

Four Oregon players finished with double figures and the Ducks built a seven rebound advantage on the glass. The Ducks also shot a season high 52.7% from the floor and were 10-11 from the charity stripe.

The Ducks host Arizona State at McArthur Court Thursday evening at 7:00 pm, followed by a visit from Arizona on Saturday afternoon at 2:00pm.