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   Makana Stone, seen here in action last weekend, scored a game-high 15 Friday as Whitman won its seventh straight. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Everything is clicking.

Sparked by Coupeville grad Makana Stone, who threw down a game-high 15 points Friday, the Whitman College women’s basketball squad rolled to its seventh straight win.

The Blues held off a late challenge from Carroll College of Montana to win 59-55 in a game played in Spokane.

It was the opener of the 2017 Holiday Classic presented by Red Lion River Inn, and the victory lifts Whitman to 7-1.

Stone and Co. will go for a clean sweep at the tourney Saturday when they play Colorado College.

Friday night, the Blues faced a Fighting Saints squad which entered the night at 5-2. Just as expected, it was a close one.

But Whitman had the biggest weapon in Stone, the sophomore sensation who leads her team in scoring this season.

She was a threat all night, dropping the game’s first bucket and scoring in all four quarters.

A pair of layups in the first got things going, then Stone added five in the second, two in the third and four in the final quarter.

She also snagged three rebounds and dealt out four assists, while Maegan Martin matched her with 15 points.

Through eight games, Stone has 115 points, 48 rebounds, 15 assists, five steals and a blocked shot.

She’s shooting a team-best 65% from the floor, hitting 48 of 74 shots, and 76% on 19-25 from the free throw line.

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   Coupeville grad Makana Stone and Whitman College have won six straight after knocking off their arch-rivals. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Two different states, two very different results.

Coupeville grads Makana Stone and Kailey Kellner both laced up their shoes and hit the college basketball court Saturday, but only one came away feeling great.

Stone and Whitman College thrashed arch-rival University of Puget Sound 80-69 in Tacoma, while Kellner and D’Youville College fell 81-49 to visiting Mt. Aloysius in Buffalo, New York.

Stone:

Even saddled with some early foul trouble, the splendid sophomore finished with 12 points, four rebounds and two assists in the win.

The victory, which lifts Whitman to 6-1 overall, 2-0 in league play, was a chance for the Blues to make an early statement.

Last year they fell twice in overtime to PLU during the regular season, then bounced back to smack the Lutes twice in the playoffs.

This time around, Whitman entered ranked #8 in D-III, while PLU was #19.

The Blues took the early lead, heading into the first break up 20-15, and never let their rivals get back in the game.

Whitman put the hammer down in the fourth, as Stone scored six of her 12 points during a game-busting run to start the period.

She was one of three Blues to finish in double digits, with Casey Poe knocking down 18 and Emily Rommel tickling the twines for 16. Elizabeth Prewitt scorched the nets for 27 in a losing cause.

After back-to-back league games on the road, Whitman gets a break, heading off to the Holiday Classic presented by Red Lion River Inn in Spokane next weekend.

The Blues play non-conference foes Carroll College and Colorado College Dec. 8-9.

Through the first seven games, Stone leads Whitman in points (100) and rebounds (45) and has shown a sizzlin’ shooting touch. She’s hitting 65% from the field (41-63) and 78% from the line (18-23).

Kellner:

D’Youville had a two-game winning streak snapped thanks to wildly inconsistent scoring.

The Spartans held their own with Mr. Aloysius in the first (17-16) and third quarters (12-12), but were buried in the second (28-11) and fourth (24-10).

The loss drops D’Youville to 2-5 overall, 1-1 in league play.

Kellner, despite starting for the fourth-straight contest, didn’t get much of a chance to make a difference as the Spartans coach juggled lineup looks all game in an effort to see what his bench could accomplish.

The former Wolf pulled down a season-low eight minutes, missing the only shot she put up.

She and her teammates get right back at it Monday, when they hit the road to face Buffalo State.

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   Makana Stone, here with CHS running mate Sylvia Hurlburt, sparked Whitman to a fifth-straight win Friday night. (Photo courtesy Eileen Stone)

The Human Highlight Reel is back at it.

Throwing down a team-high 16 points and snatching seven boards Friday, Coupeville grad Makana Stone sparked the Whitman College women’s basketball team to its fifth consecutive win.

The Blues, playing the first game of back-to-back road contests in Tacoma, savaged Pacific Lutheran 72-44.

The win, coming in the team’s first conference game, lifts Whitman to 5-1 on the season.

Stone continued to be highly-efficient this season, dropping in 8-12 shots from the field in 23 minutes of action. She also added two assists and two steals.

Casey Poe knocked down 10 to back her, while Whitman got 30 points from its bench players.

Whitman jumped out to a 14-11 lead after one quarter, then steadily added to its lead, with a 24-11 run in the fourth the real killer.

If nothing else, PLU hit a rare achievement in the loss, scoring exactly the same amount of points (11) in every quarter.

The Blues, ranked #8 in D-III, return to the court Saturday to face their arch-rivals, #19 University of Puget Sound.

The schools split four games last season, with UPS winning two regular-season games in overtime. Whitman avenged those losses, however, winning twice in the playoff.

Six games into her sophomore campaign, Stone tops Whitman in points (88), rebounds (41), field goal percentage (66% on 35-53) and free throw percentage (86% on 18-21).

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Refs played foul with Makana Stone Saturday, but she used her few minutes of playing time strongly to help Whitman win its fourth-straight. (Eileen Stone photo)

Not even the refs could stop Whitman.

The Blues played major chunks of game time Saturday without their leading scorer, Coupeville grad Makana Stone, who was saddled with foul trouble, but still rolled to their fourth-straight win.

Breaking open a one-point game with a strong second-half effort, Whitman cruised past Evergreen State College 89-76 in the finale of the Kim Evanger Raney Memorial Classic.

The win lifts the Blues to 4-1.

Stone came into the game averaging 16 points a night, and started with a bang.

The sophomore sensation hit a pair of jumpers to open things, then fed freshman Kaelan Shamseldin for a three-ball.

But back-to-back fouls derailed her night less than three minutes into the opening quarter, and she stayed on the bench for much of the first half.

When she was on the court in the second half, Stone was her usual explosive self, picking up four more points, four boards and another assist.

Two more fouls severely limited her floor time, however. She entered the night averaging 22 minutes a game, but only played nine against Evergreen.

Stone finished Saturday with eight points, on efficient 4-6 shooting from the floor.

She leads Whitman in field goal percentage (66% on 27-41 shooting) and free throw percentage (86% on 18-21).

With several other key players plagued by foul trouble — Sierra McGarity fouled out, while Maegan Martin (4) and Emily Rommel (3) were hobbled — Whitman turned to its guards for much of its offense.

Preseason All-American Casey Poe rattled home a team-high 26 in her second game of the season, while Shamseldin bounced back from a scoreless game the night before to net 16.

Through the first five games, Stone remains Whitman’s #1 scorer, with 72 points, and #2 rebounder (trailing Rommel 37-34).

The Blues return to action next weekend, when they take a two-game road trip to Tacoma to face their first Northwest Conference foes.

Whitman plays at Pacific Lutheran University Friday, then revives its rivalry with the University of Puget Sound Saturday.

Last season, the Blues and Loggers split four games, with UPS taking two regular-season games in overtime, before Whitman rebounded to win a pair of playoff contests.

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   Makana Stone volunteers to go kick some fanny and take names. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

Welcome to beat down city.

With preseason All-American Casey Poe back in the lineup, and Coupeville grad Makana Stone playing near flawless ball, the Whitman College women’s basketball squad was unstoppable Friday afternoon.

Kicking off the Kim Evanger Raney Memorial Classic, the Blues crushed previously-unbeaten Walla Walla College 81-42 in a game which was over as soon as Stone knocked down the first basket.

The win lifts Whitman to 3-1 heading into another tourney game Saturday against Evergreen State College.

The Blues played the first three games of the season minus Poe, who was working on an academic project, and, with her out, Stone has emerged as a go-to scorer.

That continued Friday, as the former Wolf banged home three lay-ups in the first quarter, then iced four straight jumpers.

Stone, who didn’t miss a shot until midway through the fourth quarter, finished with 16 points on 8-9 shooting.

Poe, who went off for 12 in the third quarter, had a game-high 21. Emily Rommel and Maegan Martin chipped in with 12 apiece.

Whitman put the game away early, cruising in with a 25-9 lead at the end of the first, then stretching it to 46-14 at the half.

From there, the Blues steadily pushed the margin, which reached as high as 42 right before Walla Walla hit a game-closing three-ball.

Through the first four games of her sophomore season, Stone is averaging 16 points and 7.5 rebounds a night.

She leads Whitman in points (64) rebounds (30), field goal percentage (66% on 23-35) and free throw percentage (86% on 18-21), while also having five assists, three steals and one blocked shot.

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