BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The No. 2 preseason nationally-ranked Western Washington University women's basketball team got off to a quick start, but fell short of a season-opening victory falling by one point, 59-58, to No. 21 Azusa Pacific University Friday afternoon in the West Region Crossover Classic at Whatcom Pavilion.
WWU received a 17-point, 11-rebound double-double from junior forward Brooke Walling, who also contributed three blocks, three steals and two assists for the Vikings (0-1). Senior forward Katrina Gimmaka and freshman guard Mason Oberg chipped in 10 pointes each.
APU (3-1) featured three players in double-digit scoring, led by 13 points on 5-for-9 shooting by Molly Whitmore. Paige Uyehara added 12 points, Amayah Kirkman had 10 points with a pair of three-pointers. Alex Lowden put forth an all-around effort with seven points, eight rebounds and five assists.
The Vikings raced out to a 18-6 lead in the opening seven minutes of the game, but APU used a steady comeback to trim the halftime deficit to two points at 34-32. The Cougars went on a 6-0 run early in the fourth quarter to build a four-point lead at 54-50 and remained the lead the remainder of the way. Trailing by four in the final seconds, Oberg banked in a three-pointer to bring the game to the final score of 59-58.
WWU held a 43-33 advantage on the boards, including 19-9 in offensive rebounds. The Vikings were limited to 22-for-65 shooting in the game (33.8%) and were 6-for-21 from three-point range (28.6%). The game featured six tie scores and five lead changes. WWU led for 24:17 in the contest compared to just 6:50 for APU.
In the opening game of the West Region Crossover Classic, No. 12 Cal State San Marcos defeated Seattle Pacific 70-62 behind 16 points from Kelsey Forrester. WWU and CSUSM will meet in the 1:30 pm game and Seattle Pacific will play Azusa Pacific at 11 am to conclude the four-team tournament.
Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and Azusa Pacific:
|
COMPARISON
|
WWU
|
APU
|
|
Points
|
58
|
59
|
|
Field Goal Pct.
|
.338 (22-65)
|
.396 (21-53)
|
|
3 Point FG Pct.
|
.286 (6-21)
|
.313 (5-16)
|
|
Free Throw Pct.
|
.727 (8-11)
|
.800 (12-15)
|
|
Rebounds
|
43
|
33
|
|
Offensive Rebounds
|
19
|
9
|
|
Assists
|
14
|
16
|
|
Turnovers
|
17
|
17
|
|
Steals
|
11
|
6
|
|
Blocked Shots
|
8
|
7
|
|
Time Led
|
24:17
|
6:50
|
|
Points off Turnovers
|
7
|
20
|
|
Points in the Paint
|
28
|
24
|
|
Bench Points
|
20
|
11
|
|
Fouls
|
16
|
10
|
|
Biggest Lead
|
12
|
4
|
|
Lead Changes: 5 Times Tied: 6
|
Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown for the 2022-23 season:
|
RECORD BREAKDOWN
|
|
Overall
|
0-1
|
|
GNAC
|
0-0
|
|
Non-Conference
|
0-1
|
|
Home
|
0-1
|
|
Away
|
0-0
|
|
Neutral
|
0-0
|
|
vs. Ranked Teams
|
0-1
|
|
Leading at Half
|
0-1
|
|
Trailing at Half
|
0-0
|
|
Tied at Half
|
0-0
|
|
Overtime
|
0-0
|
|
BY UNIFORM
|
|
White
|
0-0
|
|
Black
|
0-1
|
|
Navy
|
0-0
|
