Carly Martin scored a team high 17 points, 15 of which came in the second half, as the Blues outlasted the Pirates on the road by a final score of 67-48 at the Whitworth Fieldhouse.
The Blues (16-5, 11-2 NWC) were the first team on the board as
Korin Baker had a good move down low to score the first bucket of the game just over a minute in. Baker, who ended up with 12 points and 10 rebounds, compiled her 11
th double-double of the season.
Early on it was Olivia Mayer for the Pirates (8-14, 5-8 NWC), who would score six of the first eight points for the Pirates in keeping Whitworth in the game early. The game would remain competitive early, as both teams were 7-13 from the field, and Whitman would take a 17-15 lead into the second quarter.
In the second, it would be the Whitman defense that really stepped up, holding the Pirates to only seven points in the second quarter. After Mayer drew the foul and made the free throw on the three point play opportunity, the Pirates would score only two points during the next 7:20 of game play. Neither team would score over the final 1:46 of game time, and the Blues took an 8 point lead into the locker room.
Coming out of the half, the Blues defense picked up where it left off. After Baker opened scoring in the third quarter, Whitman forced turnovers on back to back possessions. Martin had the first steal, and then
Natalie Lundberg had the second steal and passed the ball to Martin, who completed the fast break play.
Elena McHargue would be the third of four steals in the quarter, as
Lindsay Drango would also add a steal for the Blues, who ended up scoring 19 points off the Pirates 19 turnovers in the game. Drango would end up missing the layup off the steal, but after
Kalia Coverson took the offensive rebound, she would distribute the ball back to Drango to give the Blues a 40-27 lead with 4:45 left to play in the 3
rd. It would be a back and forth quarter from that point, and the Blues led by 12.
In the 4h quarter, the Pirates would be held to single digit points for the second time on the night, as they shot the ball only nine times in the quarter, making 1/3
rd of them. Kimberly Dewey hit a pair of free throws with 5:14 left in the game to cut the Pirates deficit to 11, but Whitworth would get no closer in the game.
Martin tallied six steals to go with her points,
Elena McHargue added 14 points and three steals,
Natalie Lundberg tallied four rebounds, three assists, and two steals, and the Blues were able to play 10 players as they rallied past their rival for the fifth consecutive time, and are now 13-1 against Whitworth since 2017.
