REC CENTER — The odds are stacked against beating a team three times in one season, but the Peregrines rattled those odds for the second time in a week to grab another victory. PUC hosted Trinity Christian College in the third meeting of the season and dropped the Trolls for the third time with a 76-70 win in a Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference quarterfinal playoff opener.

The Peregrines (12-17), who beat conference champs Cardinal Stritch University last week to end the regular season, head to Milwaukee, Wisc., Thursday to battle the Wolves in a CCAC semifinal at 6 p.m. EST. The Wolves’ loss was their first conference blemish of the season.

A 15-point Peregrine lead with a little less than four minutes to play was trimmed to five three minutes later when the Trolls’ freshman-of-the-year candidate Jennifer Brink hit a jumper closing the score to 72-67 with 34 ticks left on the play clock.

But on the Peregrines’ next possession, another freshman-of-the-year candidate, Stephaine Beck (Mishawaka) nailed a two-pointer, was fouled and connected on her third free throw of the night and pushed the lead to eight, 75-67, ending a Troll comeback.

Beck led the Peregrines for the second consecutive game scoring 18 points, including one 3-pointer. The 5-7 guard averaging 12.8 per game, scored 20 against Cardinal Stritch in the regular season finale.

Senior LaKeisha Hurst (Dover, Del.) grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds, eight on the offensive and defensive ends of the court, and scored 10 points. It was her 12th double-double of the season and first playoff double-double in her collegiate career.

Point guard Meme Harris (Merrillville) was among five Peregrines to score double figures. She scored a dozen points, grabbed seven rebounds, had four assists and four steals in the win.

Freshman Nicci Desimone (Elkhart Memorial) drilled three 3-pointers and finished with 11 points. Junior forward Sara Keilman (Hammond Morton) was perfect from the field on four attempts scoring 10 points, and missed a double-double by one rebound grabbing nine.

The Peregrines outrebounded the Trolls 42-36 and had the edge in 3-pointers hitting 36 percent compared to 31 percent.

TCC’s Amanda Learned led all scorers with 22 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the loss. Brink hit 70 percent of her shots and finished with 17 points.