NAMPA, Idaho – The Western Washington University women's basketball team hung with the No. 7 nationally-ranked team in the nation for the first 15 minutes of the game, but then Northwest Nazarene went on a game-changing run prior to halftime to help defeat the Vikings 85-71 Saturday night in Great Northwest Athletic Conference action in the Johnson Sports Center.
WWU and NNU were tied 25-25 with 5:55 remaining in the first half, and then the Nighthawks pulled away going on a 17-2 run to end the half, including a stretch of scoring 17 consecutive points.
The Vikings rallied to start the fourth quarter scoring the first 9 points to trim the deficit to 13 points at 67-54, but the Nighthawks were too strong on senior night pulling away with the 14-point victory.
With the loss WWU is now 9-9 in GNAC play, tied for 5th place with Concordia, and 14-12 overall. NNU won its eighth consecutive game to improve to 25-1 overall and remain in a first-place tie with Alaska Anchorage at 17-1 on conference play.
Junior guard Lexie Bland (Ellensburg, WA) led the Vikings with 20 points on 8-for-16 shooting, recording her second consecutive 20-point game to establish a career high. Bland also scored 20 points on Thursday night at Central Washington.
Sophomore guard Emma Duff (Tumwater, WA/Black Hills) added 15 points on 6-for-13 shooting to reach double-figures in scoring for the eighth time in the last 10 games.
Junior center Anna Schwecke (Evergreen, CO/Clear Creek/Colorado-Colorado Springs) neared a double-double with 10 points (4-for-7 FG) and a team-high 7 rebounds.
NNU was led by 17 points from Danielle Jardine and 15 points from Avery Albrecht. The Nighthawks equaled their season average in scoring with 85 points, and had another balanced scoring effort with seven player scoring at least seven points.
COACH DOLFO REMAINS IN BELLINGHAM
WWU head coach Carmen Dolfo did not travel with the team for both road games this week, as she is resting and recovering in Bellingham after having appendicitis. Dolfo hopes to return to the sidelines for Tuesday's home game vs. Simon Fraser. Head Assistant Coach Stacey Turrell, in her 7th season as an assistant for the Vikings, led the Vikings Thursday night in Ellensburg.
THE RUN THAT MADE THE DIFFERENCE
WWU and NNU were tied 28-28 with 5:55 remaining in the second quarter, and that's when the Nighthawks pulled away going on a 17-0 run to lead 45-28. WWU scored a late basket heading into halftime trailing by 15 points 45-30.
The Vikings host Simon Fraser on Tuesday night in Carver Gym with tip-off at 7 pm. It will be Senior Night with the last regular-season home game with Bobbi Westendorf and student assistant coach Amanda Lance honored before the game vs. the Clan.
|
WWU Box Score
|
FG
|
3-Pt
|
FT
|
Reb
|
|
|
##
|
Player
|
|
fgm-fga
|
fgm-fga
|
ftm-fta
|
off-def
|
tot
|
pf
|
tp
|
a
|
to
|
blk
|
stl
|
min
|
|
15
|
Rogers,Kelsey
|
f
|
3-6
|
0-0
|
1-4
|
2-4
|
6
|
4
|
7
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
2
|
27
|
|
44
|
Schwecke,Anna
|
c
|
4-7
|
0-0
|
2-2
|
2-5
|
7
|
5
|
10
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
2
|
26
|
|
1
|
Dykstra,Avery
|
g
|
1-4
|
0-0
|
2-2
|
1-0
|
1
|
2
|
4
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
17
|
|
3
|
Bland,Lexie
|
g
|
8-16
|
1-6
|
3-4
|
0-4
|
4
|
4
|
20
|
6
|
4
|
0
|
2
|
30
|
|
12
|
Duff,Emma
|
g
|
6-13
|
3-7
|
0-0
|
1-4
|
5
|
3
|
15
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
1
|
28
|
|
13
|
Fierke,Monique
|
-
|
1-5
|
0-4
|
0-2
|
1-2
|
3
|
1
|
2
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
16
|
|
20
|
Gimmaka,Katrina
|
-
|
2-5
|
1-2
|
0-0
|
1-1
|
2
|
1
|
5
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
20
|
|
22
|
Castaneda,Gracie
|
-
|
3-6
|
0-0
|
2-3
|
0-1
|
1
|
1
|
8
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
1
|
15
|
|
32
|
Olson,Mollie
|
-
|
0-3
|
0-2
|
0-0
|
0-1
|
1
|
4
|
0
|
4
|
3
|
0
|
2
|
21
|
|
Team Totals……………………………
|
28-65
|
5-21
|
10-17
|
10-23
|
33
|
25
|
71
|
15
|
19
|
1
|
12
|
200
|
|
WWU Leader
|
43.1%
|
23.8%
|
58.8%
|
|
|
Score by Quarter
|
1st
|
2nd
|
3rd
|
4th
|
Total
|
|
Western Washington (14-12, 9-9)
|
18
|
12
|
15
|
26
|
71
|
|
Northwest Nazarene (25-1, 17-1)
|
20
|
25
|
22
|
18
|
85
|
Here is a look at the updated GNAC standings through games completed on Saturday, with the Vikings tied for 5th place with Concordia…the top six teams in the conference standings at the end of the season will qualify for the GNAC Championships held March 7-9 in Carver Gym.
|
GNAC STANDINGS
|
CONF
|
PCT
|
OVERALL
|
PCT
|
HOME
|
AWAY
|
NEUTRAL
|
STREAK
|
|
1.
|
Alaska Anchorage*
|
17-1
|
.944
|
25-1
|
.962
|
12-0
|
11-1
|
2-0
|
Won 18
|
|
|
Northwest Nazarene*
|
17-1
|
.944
|
25-1
|
.962
|
14-0
|
9-1
|
2-0
|
Won 8
|
|
3.
|
Simon Fraser*
|
13-5
|
.722
|
17-8
|
.680
|
7-3
|
8-2
|
2-3
|
Won 1
|
|
4.
|
Central Washington*
|
11-7
|
.611
|
16-9
|
.640
|
8-5
|
6-4
|
2-0
|
Lost 1
|
|
5.
|
Concordia
|
9-9
|
.500
|
14-12
|
.538
|
5-4
|
7-6
|
2-2
|
Won 3
|
|
|
Western Washington
|
9-9
|
.500
|
14-12
|
.538
|
9-6
|
4-5
|
1-1
|
Lost 2
|
|
7.
|
Montana State Billings
|
7-11
|
.389
|
11-13
|
.458
|
6-4
|
4-8
|
1-1
|
Lost 1
|
|
|
Seattle Pacific
|
7-11
|
.389
|
8-17
|
.320
|
6-7
|
2-8
|
0-2
|
Won 1
|
|
9.
|
Western Oregon
|
4-14
|
.222
|
7-17
|
.292
|
3-7
|
3-9
|
1-1
|
Lost 6
|
|
|
Saint Martin's
|
4-14
|
.222
|
6-20
|
.231
|
3-8
|
3-9
|
0-3
|
Lost 1
|
|
11.
|
Alaska
|
1-17
|
.056
|
4-20
|
.167
|
1-9
|
1-10
|
2-1
|
Lost 3
|
|
* Qualified for GNAC Championships
top 6 in standings advance to conference tournament March 7-9 in Bellingham
|
Here are the scores from the four additional GNAC games played across the conference footprint on Saturday:
|
Around the GNAC (2/23/19)
|
|
Seattle Pacific
|
67
|
Alaska Fairbanks
|
60
|
|
Alaska Anchorage
|
107
|
Saint Martin's
|
47
|
|
Concordia
|
75
|
Montana State Billings
|
61
|
|
Northwest Nazarene
|
85
|
Western Washington
|
71
|
|
Simon Fraser
|
83
|
Central Washington
|
73
|
|
Home team in bold
|
WWU will serve as the host for the 2019 GNAC Basketball Championships, with the top six teams in both the men's and women's conference standings at the end of the season qualifying for the tournament that will be held March 7-9 on WECU Court in Carver Gym. Tickets are now on sale for the GNAC Basketball Championships via GNACHoopTickets.com.
If you can't make it to Carver Gym to watch the home games in person, you can tune in to VikingsTV to catch all the action…all GNAC matches, home and road, will stream live and feature live stats at GNAC.tv, with home games also streamed live on YouTube…in addition to being available online, all conference matches are available via the GNAC channel on Roku, Apple TV, Android TV and Amazon Fire TV…live links can be accessed through WWUVikings.com/Live.
More information on the 2018-19 season, including a details schedule, roster and quick facts can be found online at WWUVikings.com/WBB and via social media on Twitter (@WWUBasketball), Instagram (@wwu.basketball) and Facebook (@WWUwomensbball).
One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, recording a 20-win season in seven of the last nine seasons, and 34 times in the 47-year history of the program. WWU has 20 seasons of 20 or more wins under head coach Carmen Dolfo, who is the winningest coach of any sport at WWU and ranks among Division II active and all-time coaching leaders in wins, win percentage and 20-win seasons. The Vikings have reached the NCAA II Tournament in 16 of 20 seasons at the Division II level with two trips to the Final Four. The program has 1,019 all-time wins in the 48-year history of the program, and according to available records, is one of just 16 women's college basketball team across all divisions and levels to reach the milestone.
-- @WWUWBB --
