Nov. 27, 2006

Lutes Struggle at WWU Invitational; Set to Start Conference Play

THIS WEEK: Pacific Lutheran hosts Linfield, Friday, 6 p.m.; Pacific Lutheran hosts Willamette, Saturday, 6 p.m.

LAST WEEK: At the WWU Lynda Goodrich Invitational, the Lutes played well on Friday night but struggled to find a way to win against host Western Washington, which is ranked No.16 in NCAA Division II preseason top 25. The score was tied five times in the final five minutes, with the final deadlock at 59-59. PLU center Kezia Long broke that deadlock with a 12-footer with 2:02 left, but the Lutes didn’t score again. The Vikings scored the final nine points of the game to win, 68-61. The Lutes turned around and played 20 hours later on Saturday, shooting just 22 percent from the field as Saint Martin’s University won, 62-44. Saint Martin’s took an 11-2 lead six minutes into the game and held a 29-11 advantage with 4:35 left in the half as Pacific Lutheran hit just three of its first 29 shots from the field. The Saints led by 11, 33-22, at halftime. The Lutes pulled within eight, 38-30, on two free throws by forward Trish Buckingham with 15:37 left, but never got that close again. PLU made just 11-of-50 attempts from the field for the game. The Lutes missed all eight of their three-point shots and made just 22-of-38, or 58 percent, from the free throw line. PLU also turned the ball over 21 times. Nikki Johnson, who had 34 points and 15 rebounds in the two games, was named to the all-tournament team. The senior wing also earned honorable mention conference player of the week recognition.

CONFERENCE PLAY GETS UNDERWAY: The 2-2 Lutes will kick off conference play with a pair of weekend games against Linfield and Willamette. The Lutes, the defending Northwest Conference champion, will be at home for the first time this season and will be looking to start off conference play on a good note.

THE OPPONENTS: Linfield, 2-1 overall and 1-0 in the NWC, had in impressive 55-51 overtime win against host George Fox on Tuesday night. The Wildcats, picked to finish fifth in the coaches' preseason poll, will hope some of the momentum earned from Tuesday's game will carry over to Friday night as they face the preseason conference favorite Lutes. Willamette is 0-5 on the season and has struggled. The Bearcats, picked to finish eighth in the NWC, have an average loss margin of 18 points and will be looking to improve on that against the Lutes. It will be their second conference game of the season. They will face the UPS Loggers on Friday night.

NEXT WEEK: The Lutes will have a pair of non-conference home games versus Evergreen State (Dec. 8) and Corban College (Dec. 9). The games will be played at 7 p.m. at Olson Auditorium.

- PLU -