Coupeville’s Makana Stone had 12 points and 12 rebounds Friday as Whitman used a fourth quarter surge to claim a league win. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)
There was some rust, but it fell off by the time things got serious.
Returning to the floor after a 19-day winter break, the Whitman College women’s basketball team roared to life in the fourth quarter Friday, using a 22-10 run to grab a come-from-behind 60-51 win over the University of Puget Sound.
Kicking off the Northwest Conference schedule on their home court in Walla Walla, the Blues, who got 12 points and 12 rebounds from Coupeville’s Makana Stone, improve to 9-1 on the season.
Whitman will try and go 2-0 in league play when it hosts Pacific Lutheran University (0-1, 5-5) Saturday afternoon at the Sherwood Athletic Center.
Friday’s game, the first of four straight at home for the Blues, was a tense affair for much of the night, with neither team able to pull away through the first three quarters.
UPS led 13-11 after one, the teams were tied 28-28 at the half, then the Loggers clung to a 41-38 advantage headed into the final quarter.
That was when Whitman seized control, thanks to their senior star and a pair of hard-charging freshmen.
Stone, who is 69 points shy of becoming the #6 scorer in Whitman women’s basketball history, opened the fourth with an eye-popping shot.
Catching the ball on the left side and rising high above her defender, the former Wolf dropped in a jumper which rattled around the rim, popped up, popped down, popped up again, then settled through the net.
Back within 41-40, Whitman pushed hard on defense, with freshmen twins Caira and Shaira Young, the pride of Las Vegas, coming off the bench to ignite the fire.
Forcing turnovers, the Blues immediately converted, taking the lead for good on back-to-back three-balls from Shaira Young.
UPS got back within three points twice in the final stretch, first at 46-43, then later at 52-49, but Whitman held strong both times and never cracked.
The first time, the Blues answered with back-to-back buckets inside from Kaylie McCracken and Katie Stahl, then they closed the game by scoring their final 10 points at the free throw line.
Mady Burdett, who paced Whitman with a game-high 15 points, swished five of those charity shots, while Stone and McCracken came up with huge rebounds in the waning moments.
McCracken finished with 12 points to tie Stone, with Shaira Young netting all eight of her points in the fourth quarter.
On the season, Stone sits with 149 points (she has 1,077 for her career), 81 rebounds, 14 assists, 13 steals, and 12 blocked shots.
She’s 60-109 (55%) from the field, and 27-33 (81.8%) at the free throw line.
