PORTLAND, Ore. – The Portland Pilots (17-9, 7-7 WCC) fell to the San Diego Toreros (15-13, 7-9 WCC) 61-53 in Portland after a late surge from USD. The loss drops the Pilots to .500 in conference play.

Alex Fowler led the way for Portland with 17 points and eight rebounds, going 9-for-11 from the free-throw line. Maisie Burnham was the only other Pilot to score in double digits with 11.

Kylie Horstmeyer was the leading scorer for the Toreros with 16 points. Kendall Bird added another 11 points while Sydney Hunter had 10.

The first half was a grind for both teams. Defense proved paramount as both teams held each other under 40% shooting for the half. Both teams also forced numerous turnovers, with Portland coughing the rock up 12 times and San Diego doing so 13 times. The Toreros earned an and-one at the end of the half that put them up 23-22.

The third quarter was neck-and-neck for most of the time, but the Toreros eventually put together a solid scoring stretch to push their lead to five with one quarter left. The Toreros pulled away in the fourth quarter, taking advantage of a long scoring drought for the Pilots. They got their lead as high as 13. The Pilots cut San Diego's lead to six late, but they couldn't quite get over the hump.

Portland's shooting woes hurt their chances in this one. They shot only 27% from the field and missed all 19 of their three-point attempts. San Diego also did well to force turnovers against the Pilots, but Portland also forced 24 turnovers on the Toreros with 14 steals.

The Pilots will play their home finale this Saturday against the Pepperdine Waves. Saturday's contest will also be Portland's senior day. Tipoff is set for 12 p.m., with live stats and video available at PortlandPilots.com.