May 15, 2003

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - The 2002-03 season came to an unusual end for the Western Washington University women's basketball team.

The Vikings were 22-6 overall, having a school-record sixth consecutive 20-win season, and were second in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference at 15-3. But Western's sixth consecutive national tournament appearance proved a short one. The Vikings, the No.3 seed in the West Region of the NCAA Division II National Tournament, suffered an 83-79 loss to Northwest Nazarene in the opening round.

It was the first time since becoming a full member of NCAA II in 1998 that the Vikings didn't win at least one game in the national tourney and the first time since 1994 that they had lost their opening game of post-season play.

"We had a lot of success and a great record," said Western coach Carmen Dolfo (13 years, 278-105), who ranks among the top 20 of active NCAA II coaches in winning percentage (.726). "But when the season ends that way, you feel like you probably didn't reach your potential."

Led by senior forward Stacey Miller (Bellingham/Sehome), an honorable mention Kodak All-American and a first-team Women's Basketball Coaches Association and second-team Daktronics West Region all-star, the Vikings had a number of impressive efforts over the course of the season. They had winning streaks of seven and eight games, with the last six victories of the latter streak coming in a span of just 12 days. That schedule was the product of a scheduled December road trip to Alaska being postponed because of illness sweeping through the team.

"We won some big games, and showed what a competitive group we were, because someone always stepped up at the key time," said Dolfo. "In the games we lost, I felt like our defense allowed way too many points. We weren't consistent enough there."

The Vikings held their opponents to 36.9 percent field goal shooting for the season, and were 21-0 when keeping the opposition under 72 points. But when Western allowed 72 points or more, it won just once, giving up an average of 85.7 points a contest in its six losses.

Miller, a unanimous first-team all-GNAC pick, averaged a team-high 14.6 points, ranking eighth in the GNAC, and also contributed 5.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists. She ranked fifth nationally in NCAA II in 3-point percentage at .463, connecting on a GNAC-high 57 of her 123 attempts, and set a school career record for 3-point accuracy at 44.3 percent and tied another with 155 3-point makes. Miller set another school standard by hitting all six of her 3-point attempts in a victory over Westmont CA, and connected on an off-balance trey at the buzzer that gave Western a 61-59 victory over Saint Martin's.

"Stacey had an outstanding year," Dolfo said. "She made some really big plays and did a good job of providing leadership for us."

Three players - sophomore center Susan Rodgers (Gig Harbor/Peninsula), senior guard Megan Quarterman (Granite Falls) and junior forward Jenn McGillivray (Salem, OR/South Salem) - received all-GNAC honorable mention.

Rodgers, the tallest player in school history at 6-foot-6, averaged 14.2 points and 6.3 rebounds. She led Western in two statistics, ranking ninth nationally in blocked shots (2.0) and 15th in field goal percentage (.586, 178-of-304), and scored double-figures in a team-high 23 games.

"Susan improved a ton," said Dolfo. "Not only with her scoring, but in her blocked shots and defense she made huge improvements."

Quarterman, who had been Western's top reserve the previous season, moved into the starting lineup and contributed 12.2 points. Quarterman, a GNAC academic all-star, scored 34 points, going 10-of-14 from the field and 11-of-14 on free throws, in a loss at Seattle Pacific, then ranked No.1 nationally in NCAA II. The 34 points are tied for the fourth-most in a game in school history, and are the most ever by a Western guard.

"Megan got our running game going," Dolfo said. "Very few players can put the ball on the floor and drive the way she can."

McGillivray, who led Western in scoring and rebounding her first two seasons, moved into Quarterman's reserve role and averaged 12.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists while shooting 57.6 percent (114-of-198), the second-best mark in the GNAC. Despite starting just 36 of 83 career games, McGillivray ranks 15th in Western history in career scoring with 1,053 points and needs just 111 more to reach the top 10.

"She had some injury issues at the beginning and it was a hard season for her," Dolfo said of McGillivray. "We decided to bring her off the bench, but she could just as easily have been a starter."

Junior forward Tessa DeBoer (Lynden/Lynden Christian), a GNAC academic all-star, averaged 9.5 points and led Western with 7.5 rebounds a game. She had 86 offensive rebounds, 38 more than any other Viking.

"Tessa was steady, but she also had some great games," said Dolfo. "She was incredible on the offensive boards, and really kept us in it there."

Senior guard Kristy Eggen (Shoreline/Shorecrest) started every game at the point. Eggen, who had last played in the 1996-97 season, averaged 4.8 points and led Western in assists (5.3) and steals (2.0), ranking fourth and ninth, respectively, in the GNAC. Eggen's assist average was the fourth-highest in school history and the best since 1979-80, and her 11 assists at Seattle Pacific matched the most in a single game by a Viking since Cheryl Boxx had 13 in 1984-85.

Also seeing extensive time at point guard was freshman Samantha Hubbard (Carbonado/White River), the only non-starter to play in all 28 games. Hubbard contributed 2.5 points and 1.6 assists, and hit a driving shot as regulation time expired to force overtime in Western's victory over two-time defending NCAA II national champion Cal Poly Pomona.

"Kristy started playing well as the season went on," said Dolfo. "It was neat for her to come back and finish up her career the way she did. Sam had an incredible freshman year. She showed she's a feisty, hard-working player."

The top reserve along the front line was redshirt freshman Tina Donahue (Stanwood), who averaged 4.4 points and 3.0 rebounds.

Also seeing regular action were sophomore guard Jodi Gerald (Puyallup/Cascade Christian), who averaged 3.1 points and 2.0 rebounds, and had 13 points and led a key rally in a victory at Humboldt State; and redshirt freshman center Stephanie Dressel (Gig Harbor), who contributed 2.3 points and 1.8 rebounds. Completing the roster was freshman guard Dachelle Davis (Yakima/West Valley).

Western averaged 78.8 points a game, the 12th best mark in NCAA II, ranking seventh in field goal percentage (.478) and ninth in 3-point percentage (.383, 123-321). The Vikings scored 106 and 108 points in consecutive games in late December, accomplishing the feat for just the second time in school history.

"At times we turned the ball over too much, but for the most part we played pretty well offensively," Dolfo said. "A lot of different people had big games."

Western's post-season appearance was its 24th straight and the 31st in the 32-year history of the program.

The Vikings started the same starting lineup of Miller, DeBoer, Rodgers, Eggen and Quarterman in all 28 games, the first time since 1993-94 that had occurred.