SPOKANE – For the second game in a row, the Pacific and Whitworth women's basketball teams played into overtime. For the second game in a row, the home team prevailed.
Kayla Johnson hit the go-ahead basket in overtime and the Pirates hit just enough free throws down the stretch to ward off a late 3-pointer from Erica Schultz (Sr., Medford, Ore.) in a 70-68 victory. The win avenged a 61-59 Boxers victory in the final game of last season.
On a night where each team's leading scorer struggled getting going in the first half, Erica Schultz scored 20 of her game-high 22 points in the second half and overtime. But Schultz's late heroics, which included scoring all 10 Pacific points in overtime, left the Boxers (2-3 Northwest Conference, 9-4 overall) just short in the end thanks to Lexi Belcher.
The Pirates' senior forward, who had to be helped off the floor minutes earlier after a double calf cramp, rebounded a missed Jamie Lyons free throw with 12.7 seconds left in the overtime period. Down by three points, the Boxers scrambled to foul Whitworth's Emily Guthrie, who sank one out of two to put Whitworth up 69-65 with 9.7 seconds left. The Boxers inbounded the ball, but a quick double-team in backcourt cost them valuable seconds. Schultz got the ball on the right wing and buried a three-pointer with 1.6 seconds left to draw the Boxers to within one. Lyons would hit one out of two at the line with 0.6 seconds left to account for the final score. The missed second free throw was tipped clear as the final buzzer sounded.
While both Schultz (1-7 from the field) and Belcher (1-5) struggled in the first half, both saved their best for the final 30 minutes. One game after scoring 15 straight Boxer points against George Fox in the second half, Schultz nearly duplicated the trick against the Pirates, going 3 for 3 from the field with a pair of 3-pointers and two free throws for 10 points in the extra period. Schultz scored 13 of Pacific's final 14 points in the game.
Belcher tallied 18 of her 21 points in the second half, matching a career-high scored in Whitworth's last game at Puget Sound, while adding 14 rebounds. Belcher cramped up with the game tied 63-63 and stayed on the floor for a couple minutes as the Whitworth coaches massaged both calves. Eventually helped to her feet, the well-traveled forward, in the fourth program of her college career, needed help to get to the sideline.
Belcher re-entered the game at a critical moment. After Kayla Johnson scored on a putback of her own miss with a little over 30 seconds left to put Whitworth on top 67-65, the Boxers went to the free throw line with a chance to tie the game with 20 seconds remaining. Erica Colter (Jr., Kennewick, Wash.), who was a perfect 10 for 10 on the season until a miss earlier in the half, missed both shots and Belcher secured the rebound that led to Whitworth's two trips to the line and the all-important two possession lead.
Lauren Picha scored 19 points for the Pirates (2-3, 6-8), including the game-tying basket with time running out in regulation. Picha drove hard from the left side of the lane and collided with Paige Jensen (Jr., Bemidji, Minn.), who stepped in to try to draw the charge. Picha shot through the contact and banked it in to tie the game at 58-all and force overtime.
Jensen struggled through a 2 for 14 shooting night, but had her best rebounding game of the season, pulling down 16 boards to go with six points. Brittney Anderson (Sr., Missoula, Mont.) had her second double-double in three games with 10 points and 11 rebounds, while Heather Hitch (Jr., Enumclaw, Wash.) added 11 points.
In a close first half that features two ties and five lead changes, Whitworh took its largest lead of the half when Picha hit a 3-pointer to put the Pirates up 23-17 with 1:21 left. Nani Ostrom IFr., Juneau, Alaska) answered with a trey and Hitch hit one out of two free throws to pull within 23-21 at halftime.
Belcher led the charge as Whitworth gained a nine point lead early in the second half, hitting a 3-pointer to put the Pirates up 36-27. The Boxers clawed back by pouding the ball inside to Hitch, which opened up the outside where Ostrom and Schultz banged down 3-pointers. A Colter layup with 6:41 left tied the game at 43-43. Anderson rebounded a Jensen miss and kicked the ball out to Colter for a 3-pointer that gave Pacific its first lead of the second half, 48-47. The Boxer point guard scored all nine of her points in the second half.
Anderson scored a tough hoop inside at the 3:35 mark to give the Boxers their largest lead of the game 52-47, but back-to-back buckets by Picha, including one of her three 3-pointers, tied the game at 52-52. Anderson and Belcher each converted a pair of free throws before Schultz scored to put Pacific in front 56-54 with 1:40 left in regulation and the Boxers forced two straight Pirate turnovers, but could not put the game away at the line, missing two of four free throws in the final 40 seconds to leave the door open for Picha's game-tying hoop with six seconds left. Pacific never got a shot off before the horn sounded.
In overtime, each team went scoreless for three possessions before Schultz hit back-to-back baskets for Pacific. Belcher scored a rebound putback then Picha drained her third three of the night to tie the game at 63-63. A defensive breakdown cost the Boxers dearly. After a tough defensive possession put Whitworth in the position of inbounding the ball with just three seconds left on the shot clock, Lyons found herself wide open underneath the basket and scored an easy layup to put the Pirates up 65-63. After Schultz hit a pair of free throws with a minute left to tie the game at 65-65, Johnson put Whitworth in front for good with her rebound putback.
Pacific returns to action Saturday night at Whitman in a 6:00 p.m. tipoff.