Final Stats

SEATTLE - With the score knotted at 58-58 with 32 seconds left fourth quarter, a Makenzie Cast 3-pointer gave LMU a lead it would not relinquish as it outlasted Seattle, 62-59, Tuesday night at the Connolly Complex.

In a game featuring seven score ties and six lead changes, Cast's triple in the waning seconds lifted the Lions to their third win in their last four contest and first win at Seattle since 2010.

"Mackenzie Cast had kind of a rough start," said head coach Charity Elliott. "She gets another opportunity, gets a huge steal and knocks down a huge three. I'm really proud of our team. We showed a lot of of grit and poise down the stretch. We finished it. That's something we've been struggling with and we finished it tonight."

Cheyenne Wallace finished with her second double-double of the season with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Leslie Lopez-Wood tallied 14 points, including eight in the third quarter to go with five rebounds, while Jackie Johnson tallied 13 points and eight rebounds.

LMU (3-4) stormed out of the gates as Johnson netted the opening five points just a minute into action before Wallace also snapped five straight points, furthering the Lions advantage to 12-5. Seattle (1-6) started to pick up the tempo offensively to close out the quarter as it went on a 10-7 run, slicing LMU's advantage to 19-15 at the end of the first quarter.

The Redhawks scored off a pair of turnovers to start the second stanza, making it a one-possession game at 21-19. LMU struggled offensively, shooting just 2-of-8 from the floor while Seattle took advantage of 10 points off turnovers and went 6-for-6 from the charity stripe to cling to a 30-28 advantage at the end of the opening half.

Lopez-Wood caught fire to start the second half, netting eight straight points, including a pair of triples to reclaim the upper hand at 40-34 for the Lions.

"Leslie's mindset tonight was exactly what we need from her for the rest of the year," remarked Elliott. "As a senior, being aggressive with an attacking mentality. I thought she was a huge, huge key to us."

However, Seattle responded as it roped a 7-0 run until an Andee Velasco 3-pointer in the waning seconds of the quarter made it a 47-45 game in favor of the Redhawks.

Wallace continued to fuel LMU's offense to start the fourth frame, converting on an and-1 to make it a one-point game at 49-48 with seven minutes left. From there, the Lions and the Redhawks battled basket-for-basket down the stretch as the score held at 58-58 with 48 ticks left. Coming out of a timeout, Makenzie Cast connected on a corner 3-pointer, giving LMU the lead for good as it held on for the win.

The Lions will return home to Gersten Pavilion on Friday, Dec. 2 against UC Santa Barbara for a 7 p.m. clash.