LACEY, Wash. – Western Oregon women's basketball started the game strong but ultimately fell to Saint Martin's by four points (75-71) on Saturday evening.
 
The Wolves (1-7, 0-2 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) held onto the lead for the majority of the game, but the Saints (2-5, 1-1 GNAC) stayed close behind to eventually take over—for the first time since the first quarter—with five minutes remaining in the game.
 
"We had too many defensive breakdowns late in the third and fourth quarters that really hurt us," head coach Holli Howard-Carpenter said. "We had no answer for [Saints' Krista] Stabler. She willed her team to the win."
 
While Jordan Mottershaw led the Wolves with 14 points and Kelsey Henry had 13, Stabler, alone, put up 38 points on the board. Two free throw points from Stabler sealed the win for the Saints.
 
Sydney Azorr also contributed nine points, while Natalie DeLonge added eight. On the other end, Saint Martin's Sami Jo Robinson and Hannah Reynolds each recorded 10 points for the night.
 
"Our goal coming into tonight was to win the first quarter, and we did that because we executed our offense and shared the ball," Howard-Carpenter said. "Kelsey and Jordan stepped up huge for us in the fourth quarter. Launia Davis knocked down some shots at key moments and Jazmin Bembry gave us solid minutes as well."
 
Halfway through the second quarter, the Wolves obtained a 13-point lead, their largest of the game. The Wolves' had their highest field goal percentage in the first half at 47.6.
 
Western Oregon shot an overall field goal percentage of 43.2 compared to the Saints' percentage of 44.
 
46 of Western Oregon's 71 points came off the bench. The Wolves had more second chance points with 12, compared to Saint Martin's eight. However, the Wolves turned the ball over 22 times as oppose to the Saints' 16.
 
"This is a very disappointing loss for us, but I give credit to my kids," Howard-Carpenter said. "They fought hard, down to the last second."
 
The Wolves return to Monmouth for a non-conference game against California Baptist on Saturday, December 12.