by By Chris Slack, SOU Sports Info
ASHLAND – Sydney Mullings led all players with a career-high 27 points on 13-for-16 shooting as third-ranked Southern Oregon got back on the winning side Friday afternoon, 102-52 over Walla Walla at Windemuth Court.
The Raiders (22-2 overall, 15-1 Cascade Conference) never trailed and forced the Wolves (2-18, 0-14) into 17 of their 26 turnovers in the first half, scoring 34 points off turnovers that led to a 66-30 advantage by the break.
Mullings had 23 by halftime and was eventually joined by four others in double figures: Autumn Durand went 8-of-9 with 17 points and five rebounds, Majerle Reeves had 12 points and three steals in her first start, Delaney Sparling scored 11 points with three 3-pointers off the bench, and Daranda Hinkey (Paiute-Shoshone) played a big role on both ends with 14 points and career-highs of eight assists and six steals.
The Raiders shot 58 percent (45-of-78) overall. They picked up 16 offensive rebounds – Demi Sahlinger had four and Nitteayah Barfield three – to get up 24 more field-goal attempts than WWU. It was the fifth time this season and the fourth time in four weeks that they’ve hit the 100-point mark.
Mullings, a senior forward, has established new career-highs in points three times since Jan. 20. In SOU’s last six games, she’s averaged 18.5 points on 65-percent shooting.
Emily Downs led the Wolves with 20 points and four rebounds. Alyssa Blakenship scored 11.
On Feb. 10 and 11, the Raiders play at No. 17 Eastern Oregon and College of Idaho for their final conference road games of the season. EOU and Oregon Tech are currently one game behind SOU in the loss column.
