Box Score WALLA WALLA, Wash. – Faith Emerson scored 18 points off of the bench to help Whitworth rally from a 15-point first half deficit and defeat Corban University 82-65 in the opening game of the Kim Evanger Raney Classic at Whitman College on Saturday evening.
The 16th-ranked (WBCA) Pirates improved to 7-0 with the win while the Warriors dropped to 5-6.
Emerson went 4-4 from three-point range and scored 13 of her 18 points after halftime. KC McConnell also scored 18 points for Whitworth and Jessica Kramer added 12 points in her return from a concussion.
Peyton Wilcox's basket four minutes into the game gave Corban a quick 9-0 lead and the Warriors extended the lead to 17-2 on a layup by Katherin Salness with 11:46 to play in the opening period.
"It was kind of hard to prepare for Corban's intensity and pressure during practice over the last week because of final exams," said head coach Helen Higgs. "We were sloppy during that first ten minutes. But then we got our own pressure going and we were able to get into our true attack against their press."
Whitworth began its comeback at the free throw line, making 14-18 attempts from the charity stripe in the opening half. Kendra Knutsen's basket got the Bucs within 21-12 and Emerson's first three-pointer of the game pulled the Pirates within 25-24. Emerson's jumper with 17 seconds left tied the game 30-30 heading into the locker room.
"Faith did a good job of bringing energy off of the bench and she shot the ball well," Higgs said. "She had a good sense of the flow of the game."
After Corban opened the second half with a basket to go ahead 32-30, Whitworth used a 14-2 run to take control. Kramer scored the first six points of that run and Alexis McLeod and Lexie Zappone each hit three-pointers to finish it off. When Callie Harwood hit a three to give Whitworth a 51-38 lead with just under 13 minutes left, the Pirates led by less than double digits only one time the rest of the way. Katara Belton-Sharp's jumper with 4:23 to play gave Whitworth a 70-56 lead and essentially clinched the game.
Whitworth shot 42.1% (8-19) from three-point range, 42.4% (25-59) overall. The Pirates outrebounded the Warriors 41-32 despite a significant size disadvantage. And for the seventh time this season Whitworth forced more turnovers (17) than it committed (14). Zappone led the Pirates in both rebounding (10) and assists (7). Whitworth had 17 assists on its 25 baskets.
Jade Lowery had a game-high 22 points for Corban. The Warriors shot 41.5% (22-53) from the floor, 30.8% (4-13) from beyond the arc.
Whitworth, off to the second-best start in school history, will conclude its appearance at the Evanger Raney Classic with a game against Walla Walla University on Sunday at noon.
