Complete box score

SPOKANE, Wash.-- Kara Tisthammer came back from a potentially devastating collision to score in the 72nd minute and lift Whitworth to a 3-2 win over visiting Willamette in a Northwest Conference women's soccer match on Saturday afternoon.

Tisthammer's goal was her first of 2008

The win allows the 16th-ranked Pirates (9-3-1 overall, 5-3-1 NWC) to jump over the Bearcats (7-6, 5-4) in the NWC standings.

Whitworth had several deep runs against the Bearcats in the first ten minutes, but could not score as Willamette keeper Kelli Gano made three saves. But Liz Mattila (So., F, Ferndale, Wash.) got the Pirates on the board in the 15th minute when she took a pass from Tisthammer (Sr., MF, Spokane, Wash.) and scored her first goal of the season.

The Pirates continued to pepper Willamette's net and Emily Rohde (So., F, Lake Oswego, Ore.) put the Pirates up 2-0 in the 38th minute when she scored from the middle of the box off of an assist by Whitney Ramsey (Sr., F, Spokane, Wash.).

Whitworth outshot Willamette 16-5 in the first half and the score would have been worse had not Gano made four saves for the Bearcats.

The Pirates continued to control the ball in Willamette's end of the field for the first 20 minutes of the second half.

But Alex Baxter changed the momentum of the match single-handedly. She grabbed control of the ball near midfield and broke away for a goal in the 65th minute to pull the Bearcats within 2-1. Then less than three minutes later she scored another breakaway goal, this time on a forwarded pass from Stephanie Skelly, to tie the match.

But Tisthammer, who was down on the field for several minutes in the first half after colliding with a Willamette player, scored the match-winner in the 72nd minute. Rohde and Jenny Krzymowski (So., F, Gallup, N.M.) had assists on the play.

The Pirates finished with a 22-8 advantage in total shots, including an 8-4 edge in shots-on-goal. Gano finished with five saves, while Callie Bergstrom (Fr., GK, Spokane, Wash.) made a pair of stops for the Bucs.

Whitworth will host Linfield on Sunday, while Willamette travels to play at Whitman. Both matches are scheduled for noon.