Setting the Scene: After a trip across the Cascades, Pacific Lutheran is back at home, welcoming Oregon rival George Fox to Olson Gymnasium.
Online Ticketing: The Lutes have made it easier for fans to attend home sporting events, signing a deal with HomeTown Ticketing to be the department's official electronic ticket provider. Lute fans can now purchase basketball tickets online at GoLutes.com/tickets or on the HomeTown Ticketing mobile app available on iOS and Android devices.
Series History: The Lutes and Bruins have met 61 times with the series tilted 44-17 in favor of the Bruins. The two teams last met on Jan. 7 in Newberg, Oregon with host George Fox prevailing 52-41. Ava Edmonds led the Lutes in the earlier meeting with 15 points and was one of three Lutes scoring in double figures.
About the Lutes: Pacific Lutheran (1-18, 1-9 NWC) put together a pair of strong defensive performances in eastern Washington despite being short-staffed against the Whits.
Against Whitworth, the Lutes led early only to see the homesteading Pirates end the opening quarter on a 10-2 run. Whitworth's lead grew to as many as 20 points in the third but the Lutes refused to back down. A Stacie Spahr jumper reduced the gap to just seven with 3:36 remaining in the game but the Pirates kept the Lutes off the scoreboard the rest of the way to collect the 53-40 win.
The following night the Lutes turned in their best defensive effort of the year, limiting Whitman to shooting just 27.3 percent from the floor. It was a one possession game until a pair of free throws gave the host Blues a little breathing room on their way to a 40-35 win.
Both games saw the Lutes play with a short bench with Sydney Resiner and Breeze Bartle both unavailable for the game.
Ava Edmonds leads the Lutes in several stat categories, averaging 10.8 points per game, 7.4 rebounds per game, while netting 17 steals, and 11 blocks on the season. Ashley Akamine adds 10.5 ppg and 5.1 rpg with Sydney Reisner contributing 10.0 ppg. Akamine and Emily Wada are the only two Lutes to start all 19 games this season.
About the Bruins: George Fox (8-11, 5-5 NWC) heads to Olson Gymnasium having won three of its last four games. The Bruins swept a pair of road games in the Portland metro area, edging Pacific 55-53 back on Jan. 20 before surging past Lewis & Clark 60-46 the following night.
Last weekend the Bruins experienced mixed results, suffering a 69-54 home setback to Willamette before defeating Linfield 54-47 last Saturday.
Erin Yoshitake is the Bruins' leading scorer, averaging 9.1 points per game with Ella Roberts chipping in 7.7 ppg. Alexa Border is GFU's leading rebounder with 6.6 rebounds per game.
George Fox ranks last in the NWC in scoring offense, averaging 50.6 points per game but ranks third in scoring defense allowing just 58.1 ppg.
NWC Preseason Coaches' Poll
The Northwest Conference office released its coaches poll for women's basketball on Nov. 22 with Pacific Lutheran picked to finish eight with 16 total points. Puget Sound is the slim favorite with 61 points and five of the nine first place endorsements. Defending champion Whitman is second with 58 points and the remaining four first place votes.
Pacific is third with 49 points followed by George Fox (44 points), Willamette (36 points), and Whitworth (27 points). Lewis & Clark is seventh with 23 points and Linfield is ninth with 10 points.
New Look Lutemobile for 2023
The new Lutemobile is here! During the first week in January, the Lutes' bus partner Bellair Charters, unveiled its newest PLU branded bus as it took the men's and women's hoops teams to Oregon.
Academic Attaways: The Lute women's basketball team is getting it done in the classroom this academic year. As a team, the women's basketball program boasted a 3.72 team GPA during the 2022 fall semester.
Trailblazing NIL the D3 Way: PLU Athletics continues to lead the way nationally in Name, Image, and Likeness, unveiling the Luteville Marketplace on August 31 through the department's partnership with Opendorse. Learn more about the deal here: LINK. But don't stay on the sidelines, get involved and connect with PLU student-athletes on the Luteville Marketplace: LINK
The Luteville Marketplace is the first dedicated NIL marketplace in Division III on the Opendorse platform that directly connects student-athletes with fans, supporters, and business partners in an easy to use website.
Stay connected to your favorite teams by downloading the official mobile app of the Pacific Lutheran University athletic department powered by SIDEARM Sports, available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
Featuring real-time news alerts, schedules, exclusive multimedia content, gameday details and more, the new PLU Athletics app is free and compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
To download the app to your smartphone or tablet, visit the Apple App Store (DOWNLOAD LINK) or Google Play (DOWNLOAD LINK) and search for "PLU Athletics."
PLU Non-Discrimination Policy: Pacific Lutheran University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability or age in its programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Title IX Coordinator Jennifer Childress-White; 253-535-7361; TitleIX@plu.edu
Next Home Game:
Feb. 4 vs. Linfield at 4 p.m.