BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The No. 2 preseason nationally-ranked Western Washington University women's basketball team opens the 2022-23 season this week hosting the West Region Crossover Classic at Whatcom Pavilion.

 

The Four-team tournament was moved to Whatcom Community College in Bellingham due to the NCAA Division II West Regional Championship that will be played Thursday-Saturday on WECU Court in Carver Gym, the normal home of the Vikings. 

 

WWU will host a pair of nationally-ranked opponents – No. 12 Cal State San Marcos and No. 21 Azusa Pacific – with GNAC partner Seattle Pacific. Game times are scheduled to start at 11 am and 1:30 pm Friday and Saturday, with the Vikings playing the second game each day.

 

The Vikings opened the 2021-22 season winning their first 10 games, which included victories over APU and Cal State San Marcos in the tournament held in San Marcos, California. 

 

After not playing a regular-season game during the opening week of the season last week, the Vikings will begin a stretch of four consecutive games in Bellingham to open the 2022-23 campaign. Following the West Region Crossover Classic, WWU will make its Carver Gym debut with the Lynda Goodrich Classic November 25-26 hosting Dominican (CA), Bemidji State and Saint Martin's.

 

Western is coming off a historic 2021-22 season that resulted in a 25-6 overall record with the Vikings playing in the NCAA Division II National Championship game. The program returns 10 letterwinners and five players that made at least 12 starts from the national runner-up squad. 

 

The Vikings enter the 2022-23 season ranked No. 1 (D2SIDA Media Poll) and No. 2 (WBC Coaches Poll) in the preseason national polls, in addition to topping the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll. WWU finished last season ranked No. 2 in the WBCA poll for the highest end-of-season ranking in program history.

 

Led by 32nd-year head coach Carmen Dolfo (643-251/.719), the Vikings have four our players that landed on the Preseason All-GNAC squad, with junior forward Brooke Walling, senior guard Mollie Olson, senior guard Avery Dykstra and sophomore guard Riley Dykstra all earning preseason accolades.

 

The complete 2022-23 WWU women's basketball schedule can be viewed online at WWUVikings.com/22-23_WBB.

 

 

Here is a look at the series history between WWU and its opponents this week, Azusa Pacific and Cal State San Marcos:

 

• Azusa Pacific: WWU is 5-6 all-time vs. Azusa Pacific, with a 2-1 record over the last two meetings in 2018-19 (W, 77-74, OT), 2019-20 (L, 77-73) and last season (W, 73-57)…marks the 10th consecutive championship season the Vikings and Cougars will be meetings.
• Cal State San Marcos: WWU defeated CSUSM 78-73 last season (11/20) in the only meeting between the two schools.

 

With the games being moved across town to Whatcom Community College, all four games in the West Region Crossover Classic will feature live stats only. Fans can access the updated stats at wwuvikings.com/WBB_Stats.

 

Here is a list of preseason rankings for the Vikings:

 

• GNAC Preseason Coaches Poll: #1 (8 of 10 first-place votes)
• WBCA NCAA II Coaches Poll: #2 (7 of 23 first-place votes)
• D2SIDA NCAA II Media Poll: #1

 

The Vikings landed a league-high four players on the 2022-23 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Preseason All-Conference Team. Junior forward Brooke Walling, senior guard Mollie Olson, senior guard Avery Dykstra and sophomore guard Riley Dykstra were all selected following their GNAC Championships victory and run to the NCAA Division II Championship title game last season.

 

WWU entered the 2022 NCAA Division II Championships as the No. 3 seed in the NCAA II West Regional, but went on a five-game winning streak – knocking off four higher seeded teams – to play for the national championship. The Vikings battled Glenville State in the championship game at the CrossPlex in Birmingham, Alabama, falling 85-72 to earn national runner-up honors. Marked the Vikings third trip to the Elite 8 and first since 2013. WWU has advanced to the NCAA II Championships in 18 of 23 possible seasons.

 

Junior forward Brooke Walling earned All-GNAC honors averaging 10.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game while making her WWU debut after transferring from Fresno State. Walling had a dominating postseason averaging 18.7 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in six NCAA Tournament games, earning West Regional MVP honors and a spot on the Elite 8 All-Tournament Team.

 

The Vikings reached the 20-win mark (25-6) in 2021-22, marking the 36th 20-win season in the 51-year history of the program, and 22nd in 31 seasons under head coach Carmen Dolfo.

In addition to several NCAA Tournament and Elite 8 appearances that hang in the rafters in Carver Gym, WWU added a fifth GNAC Championships regular-season banner last season. The Vikings claimed the GNAC regular-season title in 2001-02, 2005-06, 2010-11, 2012-13 and 2021-22. WWU also won back-to-back GNAC Tournament titles in 2012-13 and 2013-14.

 

Fans wishing to purchase season tickets for the 2022-23 season can call the WWU Box Office at (360) 650-6103 to reserve their seats for the upcoming season.

 

Head coach Carmen Dolfo is in her 32nd season leading the program, owning an all-time record of 643-251 (.719) to rank amongst the active and career leaders at the NCAA Division II level for career wins and winning percentage. Entering the 2022-23 season, Dolfo is 13th all-time in NCAA II in wins. Dolfo has led the Vikings to 18 trips to the NCAA Championships and a trio of Elite 8 appearances. She became the winningest coach in WWU Athletics history when she collected victory No. 519 on Dec. 3, 2015 vs. Alaska to pass former men's basketball coach Brad Jackson (518-279). Dolfo tallied her 600th career victory on January 11, 2020 vs. Seattle Pacific, in her 840th career game. Dolfo became the 36th active NCAA women's head coach across all divisions to join the 600-win club and is one of 73 women's coaches all-time in NCAA history to reach the milestone. WWU has recorded 22 seasons with 20-or-more wins under Dolfo. She was named the 2021-22 GNAC Coach of the Year. That was her fifth GNAC honor and 12th Coach of the Year accolade overall. Dolfo was also a volleyball and basketball student-athlete at WWU in the 1980s.

 

The 2022-23 coaching staff includes 11th-year assistant head coach Stacey Turrell, assistant coach Bobbi Westendorf, volunteer assistants Annalisa Fish and Mike Li, and student assistant George Irwin.

 

Two WWU women's basketball coaches have more than 400 career victories, with current head coach Carmen Dolfo amassing 643 wins and Hall of Fame coach Lynda Goodrich totaling 411 wins leading the Vikings for 19 seasons from 1971-1990. The program owns an all-time record of 1075-386 for a career winning percentage of .736.

 

One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, recording a 20-win season in nine of the last 13 full seasons, and 36 times in the 51-year history of the program. WWU has 22 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 643, winning percentage and 20-win seasons. The Vikings have reached the NCAA II Tournament in 18 of 23 possible seasons at the Division II level with three trips to the Elite Eight (including 2022) and played in the 2022 national championship game. The program has 1,075 all-time wins in the 51-year history of the program, and according to available records, is one of less than 20 women's college basketball team across all divisions and levels to reach the 1,000-victory milestone.