The Air Force women's basketball team fell to visiting Portland, 73-65, Friday afternoon in Clune Arena. Junior guard Raimee Beck paced the Falcons with her second-consecutive double-double of the season, recording a season-best 25 points to go along with 10 rebounds. With the loss, the Falcons drop to 1-3 on the season, while the Pilots improve to 1-2.
The two teams were in a close battle throughout the first half, with four ties and 12 lead changes in the period, before a basket by Portland's Alexis Gannis just before the intermission gave the Pilots a 33-32 advantage.
Portland went on a run at the beginning of the second half, extending its lead to 21 points with just under eight and a half minutes to play. However, Air Force responded with a scoring spurt of its own, sparked by hot three-point shooting from Beck, who knocked down three field goals from beyond the arc, within a span of less than a minute. The Falcons managed to cut their deficit down to five points with under two minutes in the game, but the Pilots iced the game from the free throw line.
Beck, who tallied a season-high six three-pointers, finished as the Falcons' high scorer and rebounder for the fourth time in as many games this season. Also scoring in double digits for Air Force was senior forward Kathleen Schjodt with 11 points, while sophomore guard Anna Gault dished out a game-high nine assists.
Portland, which scored 12 three-point field goals in the contest, had four players reach double figures in scoring, led by Natalie Day with 19 points. Laiken Dollente and Lauren Angel added 13 and 11 points, respectively, while Gannis registered a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
