Portland Women Beat Loyola, 73-48, in Conference Opener

Martha Sheldon scored 30 points and had six rebounds to lead the Portland women’s basketball team to a 73-48 victory over Loyola Marymount in a West Coast Conference opener Thursday night at Portland.

The Pilots had a nine-point lead early in the game, only to have the Lions (6-8) rally to take a three-point advantage. But a late first-half charge, led by Sheldon and Tina Geis, who finished with 13 points and four rebounds, helped Portland to a 30-27 halftime lead.

The Pilots scored the first eight points of the second half to take control.

Joelle Longobardi led Loyola with 19 points and four rebounds. Desiree Warren came off the bench to score nine points and grab three rebounds.

“The one bright spot tonight was the play of Desiree Warren,” Lion Coach Todd Corman said. “She played great at both ends of the court.”

Loyola shot only 32% from the field in the second half to Portland’s 46%.

“Like most young teams, we are playing with a lack of confidence out there,” Corman said. “That was very evident tonight. Our young players haven’t been through the conference wars before and play tentative.”

Loyola will conclude its two-game trip to the Pacific Northwest when it visits Gonzaga at 5:15 p.m. Saturday.

Gonzaga (3-10) holds a 5-4 lead in the all-time series between the teams, including two victories last season.