Women's Basketball | 11/13/2010 5:48:13 PM

Box Score [Box score]

EUGENE, Ore. - The Western Oregon women's basketball team opened its season with a 70-point outing, the most in a season opener in three years, but it was not enough as they fell to Oregon 110-70 on Saturday, Nov. 13.

The loss drops the Wolves to 0-1 on the season, while the Ducks improve to 1-0.

The 70 points is the most WOU has scored against Oregon since they became a Division II program prior to the 2000-01 season. The Wolves fell to the Ducks 109-65 last season in an exhibition contest.

Western was led by sophomore guard Jamie Richardson (Grants Pass, Ore./Hidden Valley), who had arguably her best performance in a Wolves uniform. Richardson led all scorers with a career-high 20 points and added a game-high six steals to go along with five rebounds and three assists. Junior forward Rylee Peterson (Newport, Ore/Newport) recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds, and sophomore guard Hannah Whitsett (Hermiston, Ore./Hermiston) added 11 points.

“Richardson played a great game today,” WOU head coach Greg Bruce said. “She was energy personified. If we can get her to replicate this performance on a regular basis, we'll have a tiger on our hands.”

The Wolves were down 60-29 at the half, but played even with the Ducks in the second stanza, only getting outscored by nine points. Fifteen of Richardson's points came in the second half, as did nine of Peterson's. Junior guard Dijana Topalovic (Vancouver, Wash./Hudson's Bay) scored all nine of her points after halftime.

“Despite the score, I was pleased with our efforts,” continued Bruce. “Our second half was probably as good as we've played since the start of the season. We had good contributions from everyone. We have some things we need to shore up, but I thought we battled and did not quit.”

WOU shot 30.6 percent (19-62) for the game, and 33.3 percent (10-30) from beyond the arc. They also attempted 31 free throws and shot 71.0-percent (22-31) from the charity stripe. Western also forced Oregon into 26 turnovers and recorded 12 steals.

The Ducks had six players in double figures led by junior forward Amanda Johnson's 18 points. She also added 11 rebounds for the double-double.

Western will play their first home games of the season this coming weekend as part of the WOU/Phoenix Inn D2 Shootout. The Wolves will battle Dixie State on Friday, Nov. 19, and Humboldt State on Saturday, Nov. 20. The tip-off times are set for 4:00 pm and 2:00 pm, respectively.