Willamette Ends with 11-2 Run to Down Pioneers, 69-62; Kochenderfer Scores 20

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Willamette University trailed 60-58 with 4:20 remaining, but the Bearcats ended the game with an 11-2 run to defeat Lewis & Clark College, 69-62, in a Northwest Conference women's basketball game on Friday, Jan. 18 at the Pamplin Sports Center. The Bearcats scored 24 points in the second quarter to earn a 40-36 halftime lead and then scored 23 points in the fourth quarter.

Britanny Kochenderfer (Sr., G, Klamath Falls, OR/Henley HS/Idaho State Univ.) topped Willamette with 20 points and 12 rebounds to go along with two blocked shots and two steals. Her efforts helped Willamette improve to 7-9 on the season, 2-5 in the NWC. Lewis & Clark fell to 2-14 overall, 1-6 in the NWC.

Joining Kochenderfer in double figures for Willamette were Amanda Carpenter (So., G, Beaverton, OR/Sunset HS) with 14 points, Kassin Hopkins (Jr., Connell, WA/Connell HS/Bellevue College) with 13 points and Elizabeth Logsdon with 10 points. Carpenter also contributed six boards, three assists and a steal. Lodgsdon added five rebounds and blocked two shots.

Delsie Johnson scored a game-high 25 points for L&C. She also registered nine rebounds and two steals. She was 8 for 12 from the field, hit two 3-pointers and was 7 for 9 at the charity stripe. Alyx Crager and Janessa Willie each tallied 12 pints for the Pioneers. Tori Eichten tied Johnson with a team-high nine boards.

A 3-pointer by Kochenderfer to open the fourth quarter gave the Bearcats a 49-48 lead with 9:31 left. The Pioneers regained the lead on a 3-pointer by Jillian Jin 18 seconds later. L&C held a 54-49 margin after Johnson added another 3-pointer with 8:20 to play. A jumper by Kochenderfer and a layup by Carpenter pulled WU within 54-53, but L&C eventually led 58-54 with 6:07 on the clock.

Willamette tied the game at 58-58 when Hoplins sank two free throws with 4:40 to go. The Pioneers took a 60-58 lead on a layup by Sarah Hogman, but WU tied the score again on a layup by Carpenter with 3:29 left. The Bearcats moved in front 63-60 with 1:40 remaining, when Hopkins scored on a layup, was fouled, and hit the free throw.

Willie made 1 of 2 free throws for L&C with 1:28 remaining, and Johnson hit 1 of 2 free throws for the Pioneers at the 1:27 mark, reducing the lead to a 63-62. Hopkins scored from behind the 3-point arc for the Bearcats with 31 seconds left to increase the margin to 66-62. Kochenderfer made the second of two free throws 10 seconds later, and Morgan Yamane (Fr., Moses Lake, WA/Moses Lake HS) completed the scoring on a layup for WU with six seconds to go.

The Bearcats shot 41.3% on field goals for the game (26 of 63), but connected on 56.3% in the second quarter (9 of 16) and on 53.3% in the fourth quarter (8 of 15). Lewis & Clark finished at 36.8% overall (21 of 57), but shot only 33.3% (4 of 12) in the final period. Willamette was 7 for 24 from 3-point range, while L&C went 4 for 9 from long-range. The rebounding and turnover totals were close, with the Pioneers holding a 35-34 rebounding edge, while Willamette committed just nine turnovers and L&C lost the ball 10 times.

Early in the game, Lewis & Clark received back-to-back layups from Johnson to take a 7-3 lead. A bit later, the Pioneers extended the margin to 10-5 on a basket by Willie. The Bearcats pulled within 12-10 on a 3-pointer by Ballard with 2:50 left in the first quarter, but L&C surged out to leads of 17-10 with 1:47 on the clock and 21-14 with 15 seconds to go. Carpenter provided WU with a layup just three seconds before the quarter ended.

There were four ties and five leads changes in the second quarter. Willamette's strong shooting during the the period helped the Bearcats eventually build a 36-30 lead following a 3-pointer by Kochenderfer with 2:49 remaining. The Pioneers' scored the next six points, ending with a layup by Hogman, to tie the game. WU recorded the final two baskets of the half, as Layups by Kochenderfer and Logsdon created a 40-36 lead for the Bearcats.

Lewis & Clark outscored the Bearcats 12-6 in the third quarter. The Pioneers tied the game at 44-44 on a jumper by Jessica Cerne with 5:51 on the clock. The teams were tied again at 46-46 on a layup from Logsdon of WU with 3:53 left. Johnson put through a jumper for L&C with just under a minute left in the quarter to give the Pioneers a 48-46 advantage.

Willamette has played six of its first seven NWC games on the road. The Bearcats will be at home on Saturday (Jan. 19) to take on George Fox University. Tipoff at Cone Field House is set for 4 p.m. (PST).

Big Moment of the Game for Willamette

Willamette led by just a single point before Kassin Hopkins
drilled a 3-point basket with 31 seconds remaining to give
the Bearcats a 66-62 advantage on their way to a 7-point
victory over the Pioneers. Hopkins scored 13 points during
the game, including eight points in the final quarter.