WALLA WALLA - The Warriors didn't make many of their free throws against Whitman College on Tuesday night - but they made them when they counted most.

Trailing by one with two minutes left in regulation, the Lewis-Clark State women's basketball team went 8-for-8 at the foul line in the last minute and a half to hold off the Missionaries 65-61.

"We survived," LCSC coach Brian Orr said. "This was one of those games where at this point in the season, on the road, and after a really tough schedule, we're just happy we got the win."

After LCSC led by as many as eight midway through the second half, the Missionaries snuck their way back into the game and with a 3-pointer by Jenele Peterson, led 58-57 with 2:04 left in the game.

Despite making just 3 of 10 free throws to start the second half, the Warriors' answer came from the foul line: Jasmine Stohr got the shooting trend started by nailing both her foul shots to move the score to 59-58 with 1:27 left. Thirty second later, Alyssa Fierro was fouled and sank both of her throws to make it 61-58. This was followed by Tasha Bishop who hit two more shots at the line to extend the lead to 63-58.

Just when the Warriors thought they were safe, though, Peterson hit another 3-pointer to make it 63-61 with six seconds left on the clock.

The Missionaries were then forced to foul and hope the Warriors would return to their cold free-throw-shooting ways, but LCSC's Brittaney Neibergall stepped to the line and hit both attempts to seal the deal at 65-61.

"Down the stretch the way we stepped up and knocked free throws down was huge," Orr said. "We found a way to win and that's a quality that all good teams have to have."

Beyond having trouble at the foul line, the Warriors also struggled controlling the basketball against the Missionaries' active guards and finished with 19 turnovers.

"Whitman is tough," Orr said. "Their guard play is tremendous, and I thought their defense was outstanding. We struggled to make shots from the perimeter, but they had hands in our faces so you have to credit them."

The win means the Warriors, ranked No. 5 in the NAIA, improve to 5-0 on the season, while Whitman, an NCAA Division III program, drops to 0-1.

"They're a quality team and well-coached," Orr said of Whitman. "They're going to compete for the league championship - no doubt."

The Warriors play two home games this weekend: On Saturday, LCSC will face Concordia at 5:30 p.m. And on Sunday, the Warriors will play host to Pacific Union at 1 p.m.

LCSC (5-0)

Bishop 1-7 2-2 4, Voshell 4-5 1-5 9, Niebergall 2-6 2-3 7, Stohr 7-16, 7-8 21, Fierro 2-10 3-5 7, Kane 0-2 0-0 0, Rice 2-5 0-0 5, Fuller 3-3 0-0 6, Heaslet 2-4 2-4 6 Totals 23-58 17-27 65.

WHITMAN (0-1)

Traver 1-5 2-2 4, J. Peterson 8-17 2-6 21, K. Peterson 2-5 1-4 7, Madden 2-6 0-0 6, Anderegg 3-10 0-0 8, White 3-8, 0-0, 8, Dreadfulwater 0-2 0-1 1, Forge 0-3 0-0 0, Keyes 2-8 2-8 6. Totals 21-64 14-18 61.

Halftime - 32-31 Whitman. 3-Point Field Goals - Whitman 5-22 (Traver 0-3, J. Peterson 2-6, K. Peterson 1-4, Dreadfulwater 0-1, Keyes 2-8). LCSC 2-8 (Bishop 0-4, Niebergall 1-2, Rice 1-2). Fouled Out - None. Rebounds - LCSC 52 (Bishop 8, Voshell 8) Whitman 36 (Traver 4). Assists - LCSC 11 (Bishop 4) Whitman 8 (Traver 3). Total Fouls - LCSC 16, Whitman 22. Technicals - None. A - NA.