LACEY - Samantha Potter had a huge outing with 21 points and 16 rebounds Wednesday night but it wasn't enough as Pacific Lutheran dropped a 65-53 non-conference women's basketball game to NCAA Division II Saint Martin's at Marcus Pavilion.
Saint Martin's improved its season record to 4-4, while Pacific Lutheran is now 0-5.
Potter, among the Division III national leaders with 14 double-doubles last season, recorded her second consecutive game with at least 10 rebounds and 10 points. This one was among her best, however, because it came against a Division II program that has dominated PLU in recent seasons. Of Potter's 16 rebounds, 10 came on the offensive end of the floor.
The game started out like it would be another easy Saint Martin's win over Pacific Lutheran as the Saints scored the first nine points. It wasn't until about four minutes in that Katelyn Smith hit a jumper to put the Lutes on the board.
Saint Martin's took its first double-digit lead at 15-5 on Krista Stabler's free throw with about seven minutes gone. Over the final nine minutes of the half the Saints led by at least 10, and they took their largest lead of the opening period, 35-17, with 26 seconds left on a pair of Jordyn Richardson free throws. That, as it turned out, was the halftime score.
More than anything else, the Lutes were betrayed by shooting woes as they converted just 19 percent (6-for-31) from the field in the opening 20 minutes.
Trailing by 19 points just one minute into the second half, the Lutes scored 13 unanswered points over the next 2 1/2 minutes to get right back in the game. They used the great equalizer - the three-point basket - to highlight the run.
Potter started it with a layup, the assist going to Andi Adams, and then a Potter steal led moments later to a three-pointer from Adams. Austin Schorno got into the act with a jumper, and less than 30 seconds later she fed Adams for another three-ball. Schorno then capped the run with yet another three, with Megan Abdo getting the assist.
Just like that the Lutes trailed only 38-32, and there was still 16:16 left in the game.
PLU pulled within four on a couple of occasions, the final time at 50-46 on an Amber Stokes layin with 6:18 on the clock. Saint Martin's responded with a 10-2 run over the next three minutes to pull away and eventually record its 15th consecutive win over Pacific Lutheran.
In addition to Potter's big night, Adams was 3-for-5 from three-point land on the way to 14 points. Chrissy Swope finished with 10 rebounds and Schorno led both teams with seven assists.
Pacific Lutheran returns to action at 5:30 p.m. Friday when it plays Northwest University in Kirkland.
- PLU -