PORTLAND, Ore. -- A strong second half capitalized on the success the Lewis & Clark Pioneers had before halftime in Saturday's 79-71 win over the Linfield Wildcats at Pamplin Sports Center.

The Pios won their third game this season, a new program high under head coach Kristina Williams. Delsie Johnson had a team-high 22 points to lead the Pios.

Lewis & Clark outscored Linfield 22-19 in the third quarter, a period that has hindered the Pioneers in past games. The Pios held an 11-4 edge in second-chance points and were up 22-13 in bench points.

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Key Moments

With the Pioneers leading 30-19 in the second quarter, Linfield went on a 9-1 run and whittled the lead down to three. Logan Kelly, who finished with a career-high nine points, hit a jumper to end the run, and Gabby Beltran beat the buzzer to restore a 36-31 edge at halftime. Beltran had a career-high six points with four rebounds.

In the third quarter, Lewis & Clark never faltered despite another Wildcats run. The Pios scored 11 of the first 14 points in the quarter on buckets by Johnson, Kelly and Jessica Cerne, who had 14 points. Laurel Marchant added two free throws, finishing the game 7 for 8 from the line. The Pios made 21 of 23 from the line overall. 

Linfield (12-11, 6-8 NWC) outscored the Pios 9-2 over a stretch of 2:30 late in the quarter. Johnson scored and was fouled, made another bucket and Kelly added another as well to give Lewis & Clark a 58-50 lead at the end of the third.

Lewis & Clark (3-19, 2-12 NWC) outrebounded Linfield 39-19 and shot 45 percent from the floor. 

Deeper Look

• Under coach Williams, the Pioneers haven't lost to Linfield in Portland after a 69-66 win last season
• Leading the team with three assists, Hannah Martin had 12 points, and like Johnson and Cerne, doubled her point total in the second half
• The trio combined for 48 points on 17 of 32 (53 percent) shooting
• Johnson had her fifth double-double of the season with 14 rebounds
• Kory Oleson, the Northwest Conference's leading scorer, had 27 points, but the Wildcats were without Molly Danielson, the NWC's second-best scorer, for the fifth straight game
• Delaney Ragan had 15 points, 11 in the second half, for Linfield
• Lewis & Clark snapped a seven-game losing streak, while Linfield dropped its sixth in the last eight games
• The Pioneers shot 8 of 15 (53 percent) in both the first and third quarters which helped them hold off Linfield in the third even with the Wildcats making 7 of 15 (47 percent)

Looking Ahead

Lewis & Clark wraps up the season at George Fox and home against Pacific Lutheran next weekend.