Women's Basketball: Wilson Leads Warriors to Season-Opening Win

With the win, Corban opens the season at 1-0. Meanwhile, Northwest Christian falls to 2-2 overall.

Photo: Corban Athletics

SALEM - Senior Tosha Wilson paced the NAIA's No. 22-ranked Corban's women's basketball team to a season-opening 66-45 victory over Northwest Christian thanks to a near triple-double with 13 points, 10 assists, and 8 rebounds on Tuesday night.

Thanks to a 5-for-8 shooting night by the four-year guard, the Warriors built a 13-point halftime lead (37-24) and coasted to a 21-point win on "Tip-Off Tuesday."

Along with Wilson, fellow senior Jessi Norton poured in a game-high 17 points on 6-for-10 shooting, while senior Kendall Dionne add 16 points, including 4-for-8 from beyond the arc.

Corban scored the first two buckets of the night thanks to a back-to-back jumpers by Norton and Wilson before the visiting Beacons got back within a point (6-5) following a three-pointer by McKenzie Gambee. After that, the Warriors went on a 7-0 run that was highlighted by four points from senior Brianne Carras.

Corban extended its lead to double digits at 23-12 with 6:55 remaining in the first half following jumper from Norton. The Warriors got their lead to as much as 15 (37-22) following a free throw by sophomore Laura Santie before the visiting Beacons got a jumper from Kasey Sconce with 21 seconds remaining in the opening half.

In the second half, Corban quickly pushed its lead to 20 points (48-28) when Dionne hit her third trey of the night with 14:29 left in the game. The host Warriors got their largest lead (64-39) with 4:16 left thanks to a lay-up by Wilson for her final points of the night. After clearing off the bench, Corban pushed its lead back to 25 (66-41) when freshman Beth McLam notched her only points of the night on a lay-up with just over a minute remaining. Northwest Christian brought Corban's lead back to the final margin thanks to a 3-pointer at the buzzer from Jennica Crocker.

Along with the senior trio, Carras and junior Jessica Steigleman added 6 points each, while freshman Hillary Sell and McLam pitched in with 4 and 2 respectively. Wilson led all rebounders with a game-high 8, while Steigleman and a pair of Warriors pulled down 3 apiece.

As a team, Corban forced 32 turnovers and recorded 18 steals led by Wilson's game-high 5 in 32 minutes of action.

Northwest Christian was led by Gambee and Lori Renner's team-high 9 points, while Sconce and Elise Gray added 7 points apiece. Sconce pulled down a team-high 7 rebounds, while Renner and Emily Gray aided with 5 rebounds each.

In the game, Corban shot 25-for-58 (43.1%) from the field, including a 52.0% clip (13-for-25) in the second half. On the other hand, Northwest Christian shot 13-for-41 (31.7%) from the field, including 6-for-13 (46.2%) from behind the 3-point line.

The Warriors are back in action on Friday, when they go head-to-head with California Baptist beginning at 2:00 PM in Rocklin, California as part of the William Jessup Tournament. The women's game can be heard on KWBX FM 90.3 in Salem.

Adding comments to these stories has been disabled. View the current sports stories Salem-News Sports