SPOKANE, Wash. - The Pacific Lutheran University women's basketball team nullified a 17-point first half deficit but was unable to seize control down the stretch on Friday evening, dropping its Northwest Conference opener 67-62 to host Whitworth University inside WU Fieldhouse.

The homestanding Pirates (8-2, 1-0 NWC) raced out to an early 7-2 lead just over three minutes into the game and enjoyed a 22-8 advantage after one quarter of play. The Whitworth lead would balloon to 17 with 7:58 remaining in the second quarter before the Lutes (5-5, 0-1 NWC) battled back, cutting the gap to just 36-26 at the halftime intermission.

Whitworth led 44-37 with 4:27 left in the third before the Lutes mounted a 7-0 run to tie the game for the first time since it was a 2-2 scoreline early in the contest. Toni Thibert sparked the run with a layup followed by a layup from Madison Salisbury. Thibert would deadlocked the score, draining a three with a minute left in the quarter, ending PLU's drought from beyond the arc after misfiring on its first 13 attempts from three-point range. When the dust settled on the third quarter, PLU had outscored Whitworth 18-10 and trailed 46-44 heading into the final 10 minutes.

The Pirates pushed its lead back up to five only to see the Lutes tie the game with 5:12 left on a Holly Flynn free throw. Whitworth would own a tenuous one possession lead up until the final minute to escape with the five-point win.

Emma Janousek led the Lutes with 14 points and four assists while Megan Drake added 13. Toni Thibert was the third Lute in double figures, posting 12 points along with five rebounds. Holly Flynn added nine points with Madison Salisbury hauling in nine rebounds.

"We definitely found another gear once we got past the first quarter," said Head Coach Jennifer Childress. "Yet, we're not celebrating the comeback, just discussing what put us in the position of having to fight back. We had some lack of execution that cost us some critical possessions."

PLU held a commanding 40-27 rebounding advantage but struggled to find a groove from beyond the arc, hitting just two of its 19 three-point attempts. Whitworth had the luxury of making 35 trips to the charity stripe, making more free throws (17) than the Lutes' had attempts (14).

The Lutes are back on the hardwood tomorrow afternoon, facing Whitman College in Walla Walla. Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m.