SALEM, Ore. – A furious fourth-quarter comeback bid by the visiting team resulted in a 69-60 loss on their home court for the Corban University Women's Basketball team, as Walla Walla University shot 68% from the floor in the final period to complete the victory and salvage a season split with the Warriors after trading road wins.

"I thought we had a good first three quarters today and had chances to get some separation," Corban head coach Bill Pilgeram stated shortly after the game. "Walla Walla was able to hang around and made more plays in the fourth quarter when we had a stretch where we didn't get shots to fall."

A pair of teams with nearly identical 2023-24 records, the Warriors (8-15, 7-10) and Wolves (8-14, 5-12) have now finished their season slates with an even 1-1 record against each other for the second-consecutive season, with both programs gutting out last minute comeback wins on the road this year and thus creating a razor-thin margin of error for six teams in the conference vying for the final three playoff spots.

Today's early afternoon matchup was a tale of two completely different halves, with Corban jumping out to 16-13 and 30-25 leads to end the first and second periods, respectively, with the Navy and Gold's largest lead being stretched to nine points before Walla Walla would consistently power back and find themselves within a possession or two.

Earning trips to the free throw line throughout the second half proved to be a major factor in the Wolves ability to earn their first-ever win in Salem in program history, as they concluded the afternoon with 20 points from the charity stripe out of 27 attempts, while the Warriors shot just 9-for-16 from the line.

With just over six minutes remaining, Walla Walla guard Maren Jones connected on a three-pointer that would flip the lead change for the sixth and final time, scoring seven-straight points to build a large lead and force Corban into committing unnecessary fouls. The Wolves composed themselves through the double-bonus shots and were able to escape from the state's capital with a nine-point road win.

Freshman guard Autumn Agnew led the Warriors in scoring with a game-high 19 points, adding three blocks and a pair of rebounds in the paint. Fellow freshman guard Lizzy Bennett followed with 11 points and two steals, while senior guard Kirsten Koehnke tallied nine points, seven rebounds, and four assists.

A massive double-double performance by Wolves' forward Chariah Daniels of 11 points and 17 rebounds powered her team to the upset victory on Tim Hills Court, with Jones and guard Jaliyah Casem scoring 18 and 15 points apiece. Jones connected on over half of the Wolves' three-pointers, all of which came in their second half comeback attempt.

Corban kicks off a three-game home stint against three-consecutive NAIA Top 25 opponents tomorrow afternoon against No. 7-ranked Lewis-Clark State, looking to knock off the Lewiston Warriors for the first time in program history.

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