Women's Hoops Blog with Kari Luttinen
Entry #3
Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2013

Hey Pilot Fans!
 
Happy Holidays! It's been a while since I've updated you on all that is Pilot basketball here on The Bluff, so there is a lot to fill you in on.
 
Last week we faced both Oregon State and Boise State, and came out 1-1. Despite being up 10 at half, our cross-state rivals, the Beavers, fought back to win the game 79-73. Needless to say after a tough loss, we Pilots were more than ready to jump on our next opponent, in the BSU Broncos.  Right off the bat, the Pilots made a first-half run and pushed the lead to 40-18 early on, however the Broncos weren't going to give up. Although we secured a 13-point lead coming into halftime, there was still a lot of business to be taken care of in the second half. The Pilots were able to push the lead up to 24 points twice. Brown hit a lay-up on a nice feed from Byrd that made it a 61-38 game with less than 15 minutes left to play, and our lead would hover around 20 points for the rest of the game. A convincing team win for us, as both CB and myself scored 25, Lexi Byrd finished with 6 assists, and JW was right behind her with 5 assists. Senior forward Amy Pupa also registered eight rebounds to go along with eight points.
 
After two games on the weekend, we headed straight into finals week. LUCKY US! Following Sunday's win over Boise State most of the team headed to the library to prepare for their upcoming finals over the next few days. A lot of work on both the class room and the court, it was a tough week for the team, however we made it out alive! And I am more than confident that our team posted some strong GPAs on the semester. Go Pilots!
 
Once both finals and a week of more practice were finished, we hopped on a plane to Fresno, California to face the Fresno State Bulldogs on Saturday. The team made multiple runs throughout the second half, but the Bulldogs would hold on for a 76-67 win in one of our last few non-conference games of the season.
 
At the beginning of this week, your Pilots hosted our second annual team holiday party and I would definitely say that the event is the hot ticket of the year in Portland. Not only is there food AND desserts (our favorite), but also song and dance performances from yours truly. This year, the team was broken up into groups and themes. Each group was instructed to create a performance, whether it was a skit, song, or dance, and perform for the panel of coaches in what we like to call "X-Mas Factor." Entertainment at its finest people! I am telling you now, we have a lot of special talent on this team that you would have never guessed. RS Freshman Alison Ryan played THEEEE MOST convincing Ebenezer Scrooge that I have ever witnessed in my life. Her moving and touching performance gave her team the edge in the competition. (Video coverage coming soon). Junior Elyse Snyder's beautiful homemade "Grinch" green grasshopper pie took home the #1 dessert prize. Here are a few pictures of the treats us Pilots made for the party as well as our outfits for the party!
 

Team costumes
 

Cake Pops
 

Reindeer treats
 

Amy and I as cool reindeer.
 
Additionally, upon returning home, we have been busy preparing for Wednesday's match up versus Cal Poly. Picked to finish first in the Big West conference, the Mustangs will be a competitive game for us, but we are more than ready and stoked for the game. Make sure you are there on Wednesday night! Tip-off is at 7pm in the Chiles Center, we would love to see you there!
 
Happy Holidays and Go Pilots!
-Kar

Previous Entries
- Entry #1 (Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2013)
- Entry #2 (Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2013)