Puget Sound (22-4), playing in the first playoff game in the school’s brief Division III history, overcame an early deficit and broke open a tight-scoring game with a 9-2 run to close the first half to lead by six at halftime, 30-24. The Loggers came out of the locker room firing on all cylinders, out-scoring the Panthers 24-9 over the first 11 minutes of the second half to open up a 21-point lead – their largest lead of the game – with 9:16 to play. The Panthers recovered defensively, holding the Loggers to just one field goal in the final eight minutes of play, but never cut the lead to less than seven points. Chapman (21-5) shot just 31.3 percent (20-for-64) from the field, its lowest shooting percentage of the season.
Junior Lindsay May led all scorers with 19 points for Puget Sound, including 8-for-13 shooting from the floor. Chapman’s all-time leading scorer Melody Bongiorno led the Panthers in the final game of her career with 13 points and five steals.
The Loggers advance to the “Sweet 16” to face Buena Vista (Ia.) at a site to be determined. Joining Puget Sound in the bracket will be Wilmington (Ohio) and Thomas More (Ky.), which were both winners this afternoon.
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Game stats can be found online:
http://www.chapman.edu/athletics/03-04/wbasketball/ups-cu.htm