WALLA WALLA, Wash.  The wintry weather outside was a likely shock to the systems of Louisiana College's players Friday. But in the evening inside the Sherwood Center the shock came from the lightning start the 25th-ranked Whitman women came up with against the Wildcats as the Blues raced out to a 27-9 advantage before eventually finishing off the visitors, 89-59, for a non-conference victory on the opening day of the Kim Evanger Raney Memorial Classic.

For the game Whitman (8-0) poured in more than half its points, 46 to be exact, from in close within the paint, adding layup after layup in quickly breaking down the La. College (2-3) defense time after time during a game in which Whitman never trailed.

In that tone-setting first 10 minutes the Blues collected five steals, turned those into 10 points, and overall tallied 14 of their 27 points during the frame from in the paint.

Of the 12 baskets Whitman registered in that quarter seven were by layups and, ironically, one was a 3-pointer from Chelse Brewer. The Blues shot 63 percent in the quarter, never dropped below 50 percent in any quarter, and finished the game 36-for-66 at 55 percent.

In contrast the Wildcats ended the cold night hitting half as many shots, 18, while suffering through a 2-for-10 night from beyond the arc and overall a 30 percent night of shooting from the floor.

Friday's contest opened with Emily Rommel dropping in a nice turn-around jumper, from just outside the right blocks, and then a steal from Rommel that turned into a Casey Poe jumper.

After the Wildcats got on the board with a bucket Rommel drove through the lane and snared a perfect feed from Alysse Ketner for the first of the quarter's seven layins. By the time Ketner added that seventh layup the Blues had broken out to the 27-9 lead in nine minutes of action.

La. College picked up its pace in the second quarter and made for a stiff challenge but at the half it trailed the Blues by a score of 51-35.

Whitman added a combined 38 points in the third and fourth quarters and limited the Wildcats to only 24.

Rommel finished the night with a game-high 16 points and added four rebounds and a pair of steals for the Blues. She was just one of four in reaching double-digit scoring for the game, joined by Poe, Brewer and Ketner who each added 11 points.

Ten players combined to forge a 41-36 advantage on the glass for Whitman with Ketner (6 rebounds) and Maegen Martin (5) leading the way.

In Friday's opener Whitworth University downed Colorado College 65-52.

The KER Memorial Classic continues Saturday at Sherwood with a 4 p.m. game between La. College and Whitworth, followed by a 6 p.m. game between Colorado College and the host Blues.