Dec. 20, 2007

Hot-Shooting Lutes Defeat Maryville, 74-53

Kyle Haag - 19 points

Box Score

PARKLAND, Wash. – Pacific Lutheran shot 44 percent from three-point range and 47 percent overall in defeating visiting the Maryville College Scots, 74-53, in a non-conference women’s basketball game played Thursday night at Olson Auditorium.

With the victory, the Lutes improve to 6-2 for the season. Maryville, located in Maryville, Tenn., and a member of the Great South Athletic Conference, is now 5-5 this season.

Two days after shooting 26 percent and managing just 37 points in a 56-37 loss to NCAA Division II Saint Martin’s, the Lutes doubled that point total against the Scots. Senior guard Kyle Haag was on fire early, hitting a trio of treys in the first 5 ½ minutes to give the Lutes a 16-7 lead. Haag added another three later in the period and had 16 of her game-high 19 points in the first 20 minutes.

As a team, the Lutes hit 50 percent of their shots to take a 39-29 lead at the intermission. A pair of Maryville players came off the bench to provide the majority of their team’s scoring in the opening half as Alison Harmon tallied eight points and Natalie Munday added six.

Alex Rouvelas hit a three-point field goal from the top of the key with 15:04 remaining to cut the Scots’ deficit to nine points at 45-36, but they would never get closer. PLU freshman Ellise Parr, who had scored only two points in two appearances this season, hit back-to-back three-point baskets with about nine minutes remaining to put the Lutes ahead, 56-40, and they cruised in from there.

Haag ended up hitting 5-of-9 from three-point land in scoring her 19 points for the Lutes, who also got 16 points, six assists and seven rebounds from Trinity Gibbons. Emily Voorhies led the Lutes with nine rebounds as the hosts won that battle, 38-34.

Munday and Harmon finished as the leading scorers for the Scots, Munday with 14 and Harmon with 10. Katie Saxe, who came into the game averaging 14 points for Maryville, made just 2-of-7 shots from the field in scoring five points. She did lead all players, however, with 12 rebounds, all on the defensive end. Alicia Brown finished with eight points, four assists and three steals for the Scots.

PLU plays its final non-conference game of the season at 2 p.m. on New Year’s Eve in Portland against Warner Pacific.

- PLU -