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THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - Enjoying its first opportunity to take on an NCAA Division III opponent, visiting Whitworth defeated California Lutheran 69-57 on Wednesday afternoon at Gilbert Arena.

Natalie Orrell

Natalie Orrell (Jr., G, Wenatchee, Wash.) led four Pirates in double figures with 17 points by hitting five of six from three-point range. She also had four steals. Liz Horiatis (So., P, Woodinville, Wash.) added 14 points, while Leah Pomante (Jr., G, Spokane, Wash.) and Cassie Pilkinton (Jr., F, Chelan, Wash.) each scored 13 points. Tiffany Corigliano (Sr., P, Nine Mile Falls, Wash.) led the Pirates with nine rebounds.

Horiatis scored inside and Pilkinton hit a three-pointer to give Whitworth a quick 5-0 lead. A three by Orrell extended the advantage to 16-8 before CLU used an 8-0 run to tie the contest. But Alida Bower (Sr., F, Onalaska, Wash.) scored her only five points of the game to give Whitworth a 21-16 lead and the Pirates would not trail to tie the rest of the way. Whitworth extended the lead to 38-29 at halftime after Pilkinton ended the half with another three-pointer.

The Bucs opened the second half on a 9-2 run over the first five minutes to open up a 47-31 lead. The Pirates never led by less than double digits the rest of the way and took their largest advantage of the game when Orrell's three-point shot gave them a 59-39 lead.

Whitworth (2-2), which opened the season last weekend against three NCAA Division II teams in Hawaii, may have played its best defensive game of the season so far. The Pirates held the Regals (1-1) to 37.9% shooting from the floor and only 25% (4-16) from three point range. The Bucs also forced 18 turnovers against a team that scored 104 points in its season-opening win over Cal St. East Bay.

The Pirates, on perhaps their longest road trip ever, will play two more games in Southern California before returning to Spokane for the first time since last Wednesday. On Friday Whitworth will play at Caltech at Noon, then follow with a game at Redlands on Saturday (also at Noon).