PARKLAND, Wash. – Four players scored in double figures as visiting Whitworth defeated Pacific Lutheran 78-63 in a Northwest Conference women's basketball game on Friday night.

The Pirates (9-15 overall, 6-9 NWC) won their third straight game, a season-high winning streak, and swept the season series between the teams.  The Lutes fell to 11-13, 3-12).  Both teams conclude their seasons on Sunday.

PLU jumped out to an early 7-2 lead and kept the lead for almost the entire first quarter.  After Whitworth briefly tied the game 7-7 on a Mya Edwards three-pointer, the Lutes retook the advantage and led 14-11 after one.  They stretched the margin to 21-13 on a three-pointer by Emi Wada two minutes into the second period. 

Trailing 25-19 midway through the second, Whitworth took the lead with a 12-2 run.  Tara Kaneshiro hit a three-pointer and followed that with a three-point play during that key stretch.  The Pirates led 31-29 at halftime.

The lead was 39-35 just over four minutes into the third quarter when the Bucs used another strong run to put the game away.  Begun by an Emma Maxwell three-pointer that made it 42-35, Whitworth outscored PLU 23-7 over the final 5:30 of the third quarter and first 1:20 of the fourth to take a 62-42 lead on a Dawson Driggs jumper.  In between Edwards converted a three-point play in the final seconds of the third, followed by Kimberly Dewey's three-pointer in the opening seconds of the fourth. 

PLU cut the margin to 62-50 on a three-pointer by Ava Edmonds that capped an 8-0 run.  The Lutes would get no closer.  Dewey's final basket of the game gave Whitworth a 78-59 lead with just under a minute to play.

The Pirates made 48.3% (29-60) of their shots, the second-highest team shooting performance of the season.  The Bucs were 6-16 (37.5%) from beyond the arc and 14-15 (93.3%) at the free throw line.  Whitworth finished with a 37-32 advantage on the boards.

Dewey scored 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds.  Edwards tied her career-high with 17 points and established a career-mark with seven assists.  Zalissa Sanfo posted her eighth double-double of the season (and fourth in a row) with 12 points and 11 boards.  Kaneshiro scored a season-high 10 points off the bench.

Edmonds led PLU with 15 points and five rebounds.  Ashley Akamine added 14 points.