By Ben Arthur |
The Pilots were unable to maintain any momentum from their first conference win, falling to Loyola Marymount University 77-62 in the Chiles Center Saturday afternoon.
Slaga poured in 13 points off the bench on 50 percent shooting and went 3-of-7 from behind the arc.
This defeat marked the 18th loss in 19 games.
“Obviously the win-loss column isn’t where we’d like it to be, but their hearts and minds are in it. They’re playing as hard as they can,” head coach Cheryl Sorenson said.
Sophomore forward Ashley Gray led Portland in scoring with 14 points. Junior Kaylie Van Loo added 12 points to go along with her seven assists and four rebounds.
LMU was paced by Leslie Lopez-Wood who connected on 6-of-10 from deep for a game-high 20 points. Forward Sophie Taylor’s 12 rebounds led all players.
After the Lions jumped out to a 14-point lead at the end of the first quarter, the Pilots found junior Holly Blades. A left-wing three from Blades ignited an 8-0 run that brought Portland back within four in the second quarter, the smallest deficit since the opening minutes of the game.
Slaga kept Portland close in the last period. She sunk three consecutive 3-pointers to bring the home squad’s deficit to eight at 66-58. Slaga followed her hot shooting with a big-time block on LMU’s Bianca Velasco at the rim with 2:54 left in the game. A minute later, Slaga launched a bomb from the top of the key to keep Portland’s chances alive. The shot rattled in and out. The Lions nailed six consecutive free throws to ice the game.
The Lions consistently outworked the Pilots, gaining advantages in both second-chance points (22-8) and points off turnovers (19-9).
Portland's leading scorer Ellie Woerner and backup point guard Rachelle Owens both sat out with injury.
Portland (3-21, 1-12 WCC) will hit the road for their next three games. They will face the Gonzaga Bulldogs (16-9, 8-5 WCC) in Spokane next Saturday. Ben Arthur is a Sports Reporter for The Beacon. He can be reached by email at arthur17@up.edu or on Twitter @KingArthur_425.
