PORTLAND, Ore.—First year Hailey Perez scored a team-high 12 points in her collegiate debut, but Lewis & Clark College women's basketball fell 71-48 to Pacific University in their 2025-26 season opener. 
 
THE BASICS 
 
Pacific 71, Lewis & Clark 48
(Lewis & Clark 0-1)
(Pacific 0-1) 

HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Pacific used a 15-0 run early in the first quarter to grab the lead and never looked back in both team's 2025-26 season opener. 
 
Perez provided great energy off the bench and finished with 12 points in 20 minutes of action. She hit two 3-pointers, went 4-5 from the free-throw line and chipped in two rebounds and two steals. 
 
Sophomore Kaitlen Carns finished second on the team with seven points and led the River Otters with five assists and four steals. Carns went 7-8 from the free-throw line. 
 
First years Lilly Jordan and Ali McCauley and junior Kaela Guidry all finished tied for third on the team with six points. McCauley finished second on the team with seven rebounds – including five offensive boards. Guidry led the team with two blocks and chipped in four rebounds. 
 
Sydney Esperanza, Shaade Williams and Karina Franco paced the Boxers. The trio all finished in double-figures and each posted at least nine rebounds. Esperanza recorded a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. 
 
Lewis & Clark struggled to find their footing on offensive throughout the first half. After Guidry knocked down a pair of free throws on the opening possession of the game, Pacific went on a 15-0 run to grab a 15-2 lead. Perez ended the hosts' offensive drought with a 3-pointer with 3:05 to go in the quarter. McCauley would add two layups to help Lewis & Clark cut the deficit to 17-9. 
 
Pacific would stretch their advantage to 21-9 at the end of the first quarter and pushed their lead out to 14 early in the second stanza. Perez knocked down a 3-pointer and Guidry followed with a lay-in to bring Lewis & Clark with nine (25-16) with 8:46 to go before halftime. The visitors would close out the half on a 14-1 run to grab a 39-17 lead heading into the break. 
 
Lewis & Clark cut the deficit to 16 early in the fourth quarter on a Madilyn Palosi layup, but that would be as close as the River Otters would get. 
 
BY THE NUMBERS 

• Junior Lauryn Fredrickson finished with a game-high 11 rebounds. She tied McCauley with five offensive boards. 
• Ky Roussin (two points), Perez, Jordan and McCauley all scored in their collegiate debuts. 
• Lewis & Clark finished the game shooting 20.3 percent (14-69) and 17.4 percent (4-23) from deep. They shot 84.2 percent (16-19) from the free-throw line. 
• The River Otters outscored the Boxers 17-13 in the third quarter. 

WHO'S NEXT 
 
Lewis & Clark will return to action next Saturday when they host Schreiner University (Texas) at 4 p.m.