Kelsey Bumgarner, Whitworth Sports Information Intern

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TACOMA, Wash. - In the race to make the women’s Northwest Conference basketball tournament, second-place Puget Sound outscored visiting Whitworth 7-2 in the last five minutes to win 54-46 on Friday night.

Liz Horiatis

Liz Horiatis (Jr., C, Woodinville, Wash.) led the Pirates with 11 points and eight rebounds, shooting 50% (5-10) from the field. Kim Bluff (Jr., G, Cusick, Wash.) made 2-2 from the three-point line to also contribute 11 points, and Cassie Pilkinton (Jr., F, Chelan, Wash.) added nine points and five rebounds.

The Loggers had three players in double digits. Jocelyn Riordan scored 15 points and grabbed six rebounds, Claire Ely had 12 points and eight rebounds, and Karen Chase had 11 points and seven rebounds. Natasha Ludwig also grabbed eight boards for UPS.

Whitworth led for the only time of the night in the first minute of the game on a jumper by Tiffany Corigliano (Sr., C, Nine Mile Falls, Wash.). Ely then led an 11-2 Puget Sound run to gain a seven-point lead. Riordan scored a trey and a deuce as the Loggers extended their lead to 24-11 with 6:12 left to play in the half. As the half came to a close, UPS maintained their lead by trading off jumpers with the Pirates, but Courtney Blume scored a three with a few seconds left to give UPS a comfortable 34-19 lead going into the second half.

UPS extended the advantage to 37-17, the largest lead of the game, before Pilkinton scored five points as Whitworth outran UPS 8-3 to come within 40-28. The Bucs continued to chip away at the Loggers’ lead, including two threes by Bluff and a three-point play by Natalie Orrell (Jr., F, Wenatchee, Wash.), to pull within 47-44 with 5:06 left to play. However, led by Riordan and Ludwig, Puget Sound outscored Whitworth 7-2 in the final minutes to win 54-46.

Whitworth (12-10 overall, 6-7 NWC) plays Saturday at Pacific Lutheran and may have to win the next three games in order to gain a spot in the NWC tournament. Puget Sound (15-7, 9-4) will host Whitman on Saturday.