Box Score
SEATTLE, Wash. – Junior guard Gracie Castaneda scored a season-high 13 points and junior guard Emma Duff recorded a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double to lead the Western Washington University women's basketball team to a 69-54 victory over Montana State Billings in the quarterfinal of the 2020 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships.
WWU improved to 21-8 overall with its third consecutive victory and fifth win over the last six games.
The 15-point victory over the No. 6 seed Yellowjackets sets up a semifinal showdown with No. 2 seed Northwest Nazarene at 5:15 pm Friday night in Royal Brougham Pavilion in Seattle. WWU split the season series with NNU with each team winning on the road.
The Vikings out-scored the Yellowjackets 21-12 in the final quarter to record the decisive victory. In addition to the big games by Duff and Castaneda, senior center Anna Schwecke scored 11 points on 5-for-8 shooting before fouling out in the 4th quarter. Castaneda was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field, including 1-for-1 from 3-point range, and was 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
Duff recorded her 5th double-double of the season with the 10-point, 10-rebound effort. She also had 3 assists and one steal. Senior guard Lexie Bland added 7 points and sophomore guard Avery Dykstra chipped in 7 points and 5 rebounds.
Despite having both starting forwards in foul trouble, WWU out-rebounded MSUB 39-28 including a 10-6 advantage in offensive rebounds.
The Yellowjackets were led by a 21-point, 11-rebound double-double by sophomore forward Taryn Shelley, who was 9-for-16 shooting. WWU's defense limited the 'Jackets to 32.1% shooting for the game, the 5th-lowest shooting percentage of the season. MSUB completed the 2019-20 season with a 14-16 overall record and went 0-3 vs. WWU.
PUTTING IT AWAY IN THE FINAL QUARTER
The Vikings out-scored the Yellowjackets 21-12 in the 4th quarter, turning a 6-point lead at the beginning of the final quarter into the 15-point victory.
The Vikings out-scored MSUB 14-13 in the 2nd quarter to take a 6-point lead at 31-25 into the halftime break. Emma Duff scored 8 of WWU's 14 points in the 2nd quarter to keep the Vikings in the lead. Overall the Vikings shot 41.4% (12-for-29) in the first 20 minutes, while holding MSUB to 25.0% (6-for-24).
The game started with four consecutive lead changes, before the Vikings went on a 12-2 run over a 4:29 stretch to build a 16-7 lead with 3:00 left in the quarter. MSUB finished the first stanza on a 5-1 run, cutting WWU's lead to 17-12 through the first quarter.
WWU was held to 37.5% shooting (6-for-16), but its defense forced six MSUB turnovers to account for the 5-point lead. Anna Schwecke led the Vikings with 5 points on 2-for-3 shooting and six additional players all contributed 2 points.
WWU will face Northwest Nazarene on Friday in the GNAC Semifinals with tip-off scheduled for 5:15 pm. The men's team will play Alaska Fairbanks in the first men's semifinal at noon in Brougham Pavilion. All games during the GNAC Championships will stream live via GNAC.tv.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
The Vikings went 3-0 vs. MSUB in 2019-20 and has won the last five meetings between the two teams. Marks the first five-game winning streak vs. MSUB since a 9-game win streak from 2010-13. WWU has won 7 of the last 9 in the series to lead the all-time series 27-16.
2020 GNAC CHAMPIONSHIPS BRACKET
Thursday, March 5 (Quarterfinals)
No. 3 Western Washington 69, No. 6 Montana State Billings 54
No. 5 Central Washington 76, No. 4 Simon Fraser 60
Friday, March 6 (Semifinals)
No. 3 Western Washington vs. No. 2 Northwest Nazarene, 5:15 pm
No. 5 Central Washington vs. No. 1 Alaska Anchorage, 7:30 pm
Saturday, March 7
Championship Game, 7:30 pm
More information on WWU Basketball 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 eight of the last 12 seasons, and 35 times in the 49-year history of the program. WWU has 21 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 with 611, win percentage and 20-win seasons. The Vikings have reached the NCAA II Tournament in 16 of 21 seasons at the Division II level with two trips to the Final Four. The program has 1,043 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.
