Official Tournament Page
TACOMA, Wash. - The Pacific Lutheran University women's basketball team continued to roll on Sunday, collecting the opening 29 points and never looking back in a blowout 92-39 victory over Nichols College in the final game of the Pacific Northwest Tournament inside Olson Gymnasium.
The Lutes (6-2) were on fire to start the game, with
Kristin Sturdivan draining a three for the first of 29 consecutive points for the home squad. The Bison (3-8) misfired on their first 10 shots of the game and committed eight turnovers during the Lute scoring binge while PLU collected six steals during that stretch. When the dust settled on the opening quarter the Lutes held a comfortable 32-4 advantage before taking a 59-14 lead into the halftime break.
PLU held at least a 45-point buffer the entire second half to cruise to the squad's fifth consecutive victory and close out the Pacific Northwest Tournament undefeated for the second consecutive season.
Madison Salisbury was named the Tournament MVP for the second straight year while
Emma Janousek joined her on the six player All-Tournament Team.
"We're excited to see our continued improvement and balanced play," said Head Coach
Jennifer Childress. "Today everyone's hard work over the past two months was evident in our transition and tempo of play."
It was a true team effort on Sunday with all 14 Lutes to see action, scoring at least a point. Sturdivan led the way with 14 points and 10 rebounds while
Katie Taylor added 12 points off the bench, shooting a perfect three-for-three from the field. Janousek,
MacKenzie Cooper, and Salisbury all chipped in 10 points. Janousek led the team with six assists while Salisbury had six rebounds and three steals in just 18 minutes of work.
PLU collected 15 steals on the day and forced 22 Nichols turnovers, leading to a 32-7 advantage in points off turnovers. The Lutes outscored the Bison bench 44-24 while limited Nichols to shooting just 23.7 percent (14-for-59) from the field.
The Lutes are back on the hardwood on Thursday, facing InterAmerican University of Puerto Rico in the first of two games in the U.S. Commonwealth.
