PORTLAND, Ore. (February 15, 2025) – Washington State women's basketball battled for all four quarters in the Chiles Center Saturday afternoon, but fell to Portland, 84-79.

While the Cougars (16-12, 11-6 WCC) had five score in double-digits while shooting 48.5 percent from the field, Portland's 52.3 percent shooting clip gave them the slight edge they needed.

Tara Wallack filled the box score with 15 points, eight assists, five rebounds and a steal.

Eleonora Villa led the team with 16 points, along with three boards and two assists.

Dayana Mendes and Astera Tuhina each finished with 11 points. Mendes led the way with eight rebounds and also had a block, a steal and three assists. Tuhina added four steals and four rebounds.

Jenna Villa tallied 10 points, five rebounds, two blocks and two assists.

Kyra Gardner totaled six points on a pair of threes and two blocks, and Charlotte Abraham chipped in seven points.

Teams went blow-for-blow early as a three from Jenna Villa and layups from Tuhina, Wallack and Eleonora Villa saw the Cougs with an 11-10 advantage midway through the first. Portland rattled off a 10-2 scoring run from there, though, putting them ahead 20-13 before they held a 24-17 lead heading into the second quarter.

The Cougs started to work back with a Tuhina triple and a put-back layup from Jenna Villa to help get the game back to within four, 31-27 with six minutes to go until halftime. The Pilots stretched back out to take a double-digit lead, but threes from Marta Alsina and Gardner kept the Cougs within striking distance, going into halftime trailing 47-40.

Jumpers from Jenna Villa and Eleonora Villa out of the locker room pulled WSU to within four, 50-46, before teams went back to trading points. Abraham sank a corner three and then a Mendes 3-point play brought the game to within three, 61-58 entering the frame's final minute. A quick five points from Portland, though, gave them a 66-58 edge going into the fourth.

The Pilots pushed their lead to 74-60 in the fourth, prompting a WSU timeout. Out of the stoppage, Gardner nailed a three and then a Mendes jumper made it 74-65 with just over five minutes to play. Another bucket from Mendes capped some quick back-and-forth, but the Cougs couldn't close the gap before time expired, falling 84-79.

RECORD BOOK CLIMBERS AND MILESTONE CHASERS

• Tara Wallack's 15 points put her at 1,216 for her career, 14th in program history.
• Wallack remains at 157 career blocks, third all-time at WSU.
• Wallack had five rebounds, putting her at 628 career boards, three from 10th all time at WSU.
• With 33 minutes tonight, Wallack has played 3,767 career minutes, fourth all-time at WSU.
• Wallack is also 193 minutes away from matching the most in program history.
• Wallack has started 98 consecutive games dating back to the team's 2022-23 season opener, three from 100.
• Coach Ethridge has 194 career wins as a head coach, six from 200.
• At 180 blocks as a team this season, they are six shy of matching the program's record they set last year of 186.

NOTES

• The Cougs had five double-digit scorers for the first time this season, last doing so on Jan. 21, 2024 at Utah.

UP NEXT
The Cougs have their final home games of the season next week, hosting San Francisco on Thursday, Feb. 20 at 6 p.m. for Fan Appreciation Night, and then Saint Mary's on Saturday, Feb. 22 at 11 a.m. for Senior Day.

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