After a close 81-77 loss to California State University, Sacramento on Thursday, the Portland State women’s basketball team rallied to beat Northern Arizona University on Saturday in a game that came down to the very last play. Senior guard Courtney VanBrocklin’s free throw with two seconds remaining made the difference in a hard-fought 60-59 victory over the Lumberjacks.
Women’s basketball finding their range
In the clutch: Courtney VanBrocklin and the Vikings got back on track against Northern Arizona. Photo by Karl Kuchs.
After a close 81-77 loss to California State University, Sacramento on Thursday, the Portland State women’s basketball team rallied to beat Northern Arizona University on Saturday in a game that came down to the very last play. Senior guard Courtney VanBrocklin’s free throw with two seconds remaining made the difference in a hard-fought 60-59 victory over the Lumberjacks.
The Vikings, 8-7 overall and 2-4 in conference play, have been working to establish consistency on both ends of the floor this season. Even after the tough loss to Sacramento State—a game in which the Vikings led for most of the first half before gradually losing their grip on the game in the second—the team refused to allow themselves to get discouraged.
Against Northern Arizona, PSU managed to keep the game close despite trailing until midway through the second half. With 30 seconds left on the clock and the game tied at 59-all, an offensive foul was called on the Vikings off the inbound pass. But as she has all season, VanBrocklin came through when it mattered, stealing the ball and driving down to the other end to draw a foul.
At the line, VanBrocklin made her first free throw, then missed the second but recovered the rebound, giving the Vikings a one-point edge for the win. The Lumberjacks fell to 3-11 overall and 2-3 in conference.
“It was so exciting,” head coach Sherri Murrell said. “We only led in the game for seven seconds or so—it took tough basketball to win.”
VanBrocklin ended Saturday with a game-high 20 points. Junior forward Angela Misa recorded her seventh double-double with 15 points and a game-high 15 rebounds, and sophomore guard Lariel Powell chipped in 10 points.
“We took care of the ball,” Murrell said. “We only had 13 turnovers. Having Kate [Lanz] out as our top guard, we’ve been struggling a little bit, but we really have been talking to the players. It helped our team basketball.”
“We just had to continue working on defense and playing hard,” junior forward Allie Brock added. “It was important to continue having our guards attack the basket and look to score or dump down to the post.”
The Vikings will look to build on the win this weekend at home, where they’ll take on the University of Northern Colorado on Thursday at 7:30 p.m., followed by a game against the University of North Dakota on Saturday at 2 p.m.
