HILO, Hawai`i—Allie Navarette had 12 points, 11 rebounds and blocked the potential game-tying three-pointer at the buzzer to help the Hawaii Hilo Vulcans edge Douglas College 69-66 on Monday night at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium.

The game was an exhibition contest for Douglas (British Columbia), who is 4-2 in the Pacific Western Athletic Association. It was a counting game for the Vulcans, they are now 3-3 on the season to wrap up the 2017 calendar year.

Alyssa Movchan had a career-high 14 points and Safia Sheikh added 12 for the Vulcans. Sara Shimizu had eight points and four assists.

The Vulcans led for most of the first quarter, but a pair of free throws and a basket by Douglas' Nanaya Miki tied the game right before the end of the period at 15-15. The Royals earned eight of their 15 points at the free throw line.

UH Hilo opened the second quarter with a three-pointer by Sheikh, an inside basket by Navarette, and a few minutes later after a trey by Movchan they would stretch their lead to 27-19. Back-to-back buckets by Kailani Jones would keep the lead at eight (31-23) and a desperation three-pointer by Asia Smith at the buzzer made the count 36-25 at the break.

The Vulcans still held a ten point lead in the third quarter (43-33) after a Shimizu basket, but Douglas would then answer with a 12-0 run, pulling within one point on a lay-in by Sarah Jorgenson, tying the game on a free throw by Miki, and then taking the lead on a Miki jumper (45-43). Sheikh stopped the Vulcan drought with a trey, and baskets by Movchan and a three-point play by Danielle Dacosta gave the lead back to UHH at the end of the period (51-46).

The home team would push their lead to nine (57-48) after a Movchan three, but the Royals would battle back again, cutting the margin to two points on a long bomb by Amber Beasley (66-64)with less than two minutes left. Another Miki basket with 1:10 left cut the margin to one (67-66).

Navarette would kiss one off the glass at the other end with 45 seconds left, and a Douglas miss from three-point range gave the ball back to Vulcans, forcing the Royals to foul. But UHH missed both free throw attempts, setting up one final trey launch for the visitors from Canada with seven seconds remaining, but Navarette blocked the attempt as the buzzer sounded.

Rachel Beauchamp led the Royals with 21 points and nine rebounds. Miki finished with 18 and seven boards.  The Vulcans hit 10-of-25 shots from three-point range, including four by Sheikh.

The Vulcans will now break for the holidays, returning to the Civic Auditorium and Pacific West Conference play on Wednesday, January 3 against Notre Dame de Namur.