PORTLAND – Northwest used a familiar pattern and a strong fourth-quarter performance to hand Warner Pacific its first conference loss, 71-61, Friday.
 
The Eagles showed no deviation from their season-long trend of good starts, getting out to a 24-19 lead. Northwest trailed at halftime, however, and had a 52-51 lead going into the final quarter.
 
Sam VanLoo scored four points in NU's 6-0 start to the fourth quarter, and the Eagles' defense stiffened. The Knights were 4-of-13 from the field and forced four turnovers, including two steals by Livi Lindsey.
 
Lindsey and VanLoo had six points each in the final frame.
 
"Great win for the Lady Eagles tonight!" said NU Head Coach Ken Crawford. "It was a back-and-forth contest, and I was really pleased with the way we responded when the pressure was on. Great team effort from those that were on the court and those that were on the bench. Going to enjoy this one and be ready to go against Multnomah tomorrow night."
 
Lindsey and Grace Meza paced the Eagles with 17 points each, with VanLoo getting 13 points to go with a team-leading seven rebounds, four assists, and two blocked shots. Lindsey led with three steals.
 
Northwest improved to 9-2 (its best 11-game start) in all games and 3-1 in the Cascade Collegiate Conference. Warner Pacific fell to 5-4 overall and 3-1 in the league.
 
The Eagles visit Multnomah to wrap up the road trip at 3 p.m. on Saturday.