Makana Stone roars back up court after scoring in the NCAA tourney. (John Fisken photos)
The pro-Makana crowd likes what they see.
It’s 3-on-1 and yet you know where that rebound is going — right into Stone’s hands.
Staying vocal during her brief time on the bench.
Killers when it matters most.
After losing twice in overtime during the regular season to the University of Puget Sound, Whitman College roared back to knock off the Loggers twice in eight days under the biggest spotlight possible.
First came a win in the championship game of the Northwest Conference tournament, but Saturday night topped that.
Holding off a furious fourth-quarter comeback by the Loggers, the Blues and fab frosh Makana Stone stunned UPS 69-67 in the second round of the NCAA D-III basketball tourney.
That sends Whitman to the Sweet 16, where they will face Trinity (Texas) Mar. 10 at a still-to-be-decided spot.
The Blues are 25-4, while their next foes, who hail from San Antonio, are 28-1.
Whitman and Trinity share a unique bond, as they were the only schools to knock off Puget Sound (26-3) this season.
Trinity nipped the Loggers 68-65 at a mid-season tourney hosted by Whitman’s league rival, Pacific Lutheran University.
Puget Sound, which won the regular season title in the Northwest Conference, is a dangerous team and it almost pulled off an astounding comeback Saturday night.
Whitman had jumped out to an 18-8 lead after one quarter, then stretched it to 54-41 heading into the fourth.
UPS finally started scoring, but Whitman still had them seemingly at bay at 66-57, when the Loggers went nuclear from behind the arc.
Back-to-back three-balls cut the lead to 66-63, but Whitman’s ever-steady Casey Poe blunted the rally by knocking down a jumper with 34 seconds on the clock.
After a Poe free throw with 25 ticks left pushed the lead out to six, the Loggers hit one final trey before Whitman escaped.
Coupeville import Stone, making her 12th start of the season, went for four points, six rebounds, an assist and a steal in the win.
Maegen Martin came off the bench to pace Whitman with 16 points, while Chelsi Brewer popped for 14 and Emily Rommel rattled the rim for 11.
Stone has played in 28 of 29 games this season (missing one with an injury), scoring 193 points (6.9 a night) and snagging 175 rebounds (6.3).
She is #2 on the team in rebounding and field goal percentage, while also racking up 30 assists, 14 steals and 11 blocks.
To see the tourney bracket, pop over to:
Coupeville Sports 
Looks like they’re headed our way. Presumably St. Thomas holds that sectional, so we’ll be there! 🙂