The No. 8 Willamette girls basketball team punched its first-ever ticket to the Class 6A state quarterfinals on Friday night, stepping on the gas during the fourth quarter to overcome an eight-point first-half deficit and beat No. 9 Oregon City 54-43.
In front of a packed home crowd, the Wolverines trailed 20-11 early in the second quarter, but ended the period on a 10-2 run to bring themselves within one at the break. From there, Willamette outscored the visiting Pioneers 33-21 in the second half to complete an impressive second round come-from-behind win.