PORTLAND, Ore.- Ashlee Orndorff racked up her seventh double-double and three other Pilots players scored in double-figures as the Pilot women’s basketball team defeated the Santa Clara Broncos, 69-61 at the Chiles Center tonight. With the win, Portland improves to 9-11 on the season, 4-3 in WCC play. The Broncos fall to 6-14 overall with a 2-5 WCC mark.

“We kept taking it to the hole and we had some good opportunities at the free-throw line tonight,” said Head Coach Jim Sollars. “We did a nice job of battling back when they pressured us, we forced them to commit 24 turnovers and we kept our composure when it counted.”

“We rebounded hard and our effort was great tonight,” said Ashlee Orndorff. “At times we had a few lapses, but we recovered well. Everyone stepped up and we really wanted to win this game.”

The Broncos controlled the tip, but on their first possession, Orndorff stole the ball, setting up the Pilot offensive. Khalila O’Rielly-Williams was hacked by SCU’s Tori Markey and went to the line, converting both frees for an early 2-0 UP lead. Santa Clara didn’t score until the 17-minute mark on a trey by Quinn Thomas, and then went on a 16-2 run with just over 12 minutes left in the half. The Pilots went on a 13-4 run of their own, closing to within one point (20-19) on a made free-throw by O’Rielly-Williams with 7:33 left. The score remained close for the remainder of the half and the Broncos went into the lockerroom with a 30-28 halftime lead.

Orndorff racked up 11 points and seven rebounds in the first half alone. Her signature one-handed bank shot was just the offensive edge the Pilots needed on a very tough shooting Santa Clara team. For the half, Portland shot 32 percent (10-31) from the field, 17 percent (2-12) from behind the arc and a perfect 100 percent (6-6) from the free-throw line. Santa Clara shot 45 percent (13-29) from the field, 22 percent (2-9) from three-point range and 67 percent (2-3) from the stripe. The Pilots held the edge on the boards, 19-17 in the first half.

In the second half, Portland trailed for the first eight minutes, but continued to pressure the ball and make aggressive plays. The Pilots took their third lead of the night on a made trey by Whitney Grant with 11:54 on the clock. Portland then went on a 6-0 run over the next three minutes and when the Broncos countered, Portland pushed to extend their lead to 10 points on a made free-throw by O’Rielly-Williams. Santa Clara came to within one point of regaining the lead, but two Bronco players committed intentional fouls with just under two minutes to go, proving what a physical game it was. The Pilots kept their composure and made some clutch free-throws when it counted for a 69-61 victory.

“Ashlee (Orndorff) played tough tonight and had a really good game,” said Sollars. “Khalila (O’Rielly-Williams) stepped it up in the second half for us, making some key plays. I thought Jamie Medley and Amy Botto stepped up and gave us relief when we needed it down low in the post.”

Portland forced 24 Santa Clara turnovers, which turned into 29 points for the Pilots. Portland won the battle on the boards, 36-31 and went to the free-throw line 34 times. The Pilots recorded a season-best 27 made free-throws on the night and shot 37 percent (19-52) from the floor and 25 percent (4-16) from three-point range for the game.

Orndorff scored 14 points and tied a career-best 11 boards and three steals. O’Rielly-Williams scored 20 points, hitting a season-best 10-of-16 from the free-throw line. Grant and Lauren Himmelspach each added 14 points for the Pilots. Himmelspach was a perfect 10-of-10 from the stripe, a career-best.

“Our game plan was to come out and be aggressive from the tip,” said Khalila O’Rielly-Williams. “They were very physical so we had to play tough and stay head strong. It was a fun game and it just seemed like our team was on the same page this weekend.”

SCU shot 43 percent (24-56) from the floor, 35 percent (8-23) from behind the arc and just 63 percent (5-8) from the stripe for the game. Quinn Thomas led all players with 17 points, while Ashley Gonnerman totaled 13 points. Jenni Gottschalk added 12 points on the night.

Portland hits the road on Feb. 5 and Feb. 7, facing Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount. Both games are set to begin at 7:00 p.m.