By: Sam Knehans, Communications & Sports Information Intern

FRANKFORT, Ky.  – (Box Score) No. 7 Loyola (La.) became the second No. 7 seed to advance to the NAIA Division I Women’s Basketball National Championship quarterfinals when it bested No. 3 Our Lady of the Lake (Texas), 72-67.

The Wolf Pack knocked off No. 2 Georgetown (Ky.), 87-80, on Thursday evening , while the Saints defeated No. 6 Talladega (Ala.), 97-94, to get to the second round.
Loyola  led by double-digits for much of the first half after an early 16-2 spurt and took a 10-point margin to the locker room at the half.

The Saints slowly chipped away throughout the second half, but each time Loyola responded with a run of its own, maintaining a four-point lead throughout the first 17 minutes. Down by 10 with 3:02 remaining, Our Lady of the Lake made final push, pulling within three on a field goal by junior guard Electra Roberts with 28 seconds remaining. After an Our Lady of the Lake turnover, junior guard Janeicia Neely was intentionally fouled and sunk both free throws to put the game out of reach for the Saints.

Roberts led all scorers with 26 points in the losing effort. The Saints featured a more balanced attack with four players scoring in double-figures. Junior guard Megan Whittaker led the way for the Wolf Pack with 21 points. Whittaker also set an NAIA Division I Women’s Basketball National Championship record with 19 3-point attempts, breaking the 23-year-old mark (18) set by Kelli Ritzer of former member Minnesota-Duluth in 1991.

Loyola shot well from three-point range (31.7 percent, 13-of-41) and at the free throw line (81.3 percent, 13-of-16), but was outdone by the Saints from the field (37.5 percent, 21-of-56). Loyola made up for its shooting percentage (34.3 percent, 13-of-67) by grabbing 21 offensive boards and totaling 55 rebounds to Our Lady of the Lake’s 32.

Loyola (23-11) advances to its second all-time national championship quarterfinals and will face the winner of No. 5 John Brown (Ark.) and No. 1 Vanguard (Calif.) on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. EDT. For the second time in NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship history two No. 7 seeds will compete in the quarterfinals (2012).

Our Lady of the Lake is eliminated in the second round after winning its first-ever NAIA Division I Women’s Basketball national championship game this year. The Saints end their season with a record of 27-5.