PORTLAND – Portland overcame a sluggish start and 13-point early deficit to pull within one point midway through the second half, but eventually fell to visiting Santa Clara 93-79 Saturday afternoon at the Chiles Center. Quinn Thomas led four Bronco players in double figures with 21 points, while Ashlee Orndorff led all scorers with 25 points and 10 rebounds for the Pilots (5-10, 0-2 WCC). Santa Clara (7-8, 1-1 WCC) has now won four of its last five contests, while Portland has lost three in a row.

It was a team effort for the Broncos who had 12 players get playing time, 10 of which scored and 11 players had at least one rebound. An undersized Santa Clara team started four guards but out-rebounded the Pilots 41-39 and gained a 38-28 edge in points in the paint.

Portland went to the foul line a season-high 41 times for the game, going 17-of-25 from the stripe in the second half to fuel a comeback. Down 11 at the 13:29 mark, the Pilots used an 11-1 run over the next four minutes to pull within 63-62, but Santa Clara pushed it back to double-digits on a Thomas three-pointer at 5:42. Portland would get no closer than eight points down the stretch as the Broncos made 6-of-7 from the charity stripe in the closing minutes.

Thomas finished 7-of-15 from the field, including 5-of-10 from three-point range, while adding seven rebounds, four steals and two blocked shots. Ashley Graham tacked on 18 points and seven assists, while Kasey Monteith and Tori Markey chipped in 16 and 13 points for the Broncos.

Orndorff had another statistically solid outing for Portland. In addition to her second double-double of the year, Orndorff added four blocks and three steals. Whitney Grant scored a season-high 16 points to go with five rebounds and five assists in another 40-minute effort. Grant has now played 40 minutes in nine games this season.

Portland fell behind by 13 late in the first half but closed the period with a 9-0 run in the final 1:49 to make it 41-37 at halftime.

Amy Botto and Jamie Medley added 13 points apiece for the Pilots.

Portland continues WCC play on the road at Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount. The Pilots and Waves meet on Thursday, Jan. 13 at 7 p.m., while UP and the Lions tip-off on Saturday, Jan. 15 at 2 p.m.