CARSON, Calif. – The Western Washington University women's basketball team had its season come to a close Friday falling to Azusa Pacific University 71-53 in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Division II Championships West Regional.

 

The Vikings were the No. 2 seed entering the eight-team tournament, but couldn't overcome a hot start by No. 7 APU in the 18-point loss. WWU ended its season with a 24-4 record, winning the GNAC regular season and postseason titles, and making a third consecutive trip to the NCAA Championships. 

 

The defending regional champion Vikings could not rekindle the magical postseason run from last year that ended with a trip to the national title game. WWU fell behind 21-15 after the first quarter and trailed 38-25 at halftime.

 

Looking for a repeat of their 17-point comeback victory in their last game in the GNAC Championships final vs. Montana State Billings, the Vikings cut the deficit to eight points at 49-41 on a on a late three-pointer to end the third quarter by Avery Dykstra.

 

APU dashed any hopes of a WWU comeback opening the fourth quarter going on a 9-1 run and would grow the lead to as many as 22 points late in the final quarter.

 

WWU was limited to a season-low shooting performance going 19-for-59 from the field (.322) and were just 3-for-22 from three-point range. The Vikings entered the game ranked third in the nation in field goal percentage (.488) and three-point field goal percentage (.381). Western won the battle of the boards 46-35 with a 15-7 edge in offensive rebounds.

 

Junior forward Brooke Walling led the Vikings with 14 points on 6-for-13 shooting, hitting a pair of three-pointers. Waling also added eight rebounds and three steals. Senior forward Carley Zaragoza also reached double-digits in scoring with 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting and grabbed seven rebounds. Ten of 11 players that saw action scored points.

 

APU (26-4) never trailed in the game and had four players score in double-digits, led by 22 points from TyLee Manuel on 9-for-12 shooting. Paige Uyehara added 16 points and Alex Lowden added 14 points. The Cougars shot only 35.7-percent (20-for-56), but benefited from 31 trips to the free throw line making 27 shots from the charity stripe. 

 

Another great season by the Vikings was bookended by losses to Azusa Pacific, falling in the season opener by one point 59-58 on November 18 in Bellingham (Whatcom CC) and Friday in the NCAA Championships West Regional quarterfinal. 

 

Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and APU in the NCAA West Regional Quarterfinal:

 

 

Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown from the 2022-23 season:

 

 

Here is a game-by-game look at the 2022-23 season results following Friday's season-ending loss to APU:

 

 

The Vikings made their 19th NCAA Championships appearance in 24 possible seasons (since 1998-99) and were the defending West Regional Champions. Advanced to play in the national title game last season, falling to Glenville State. The Vikings own an all-time 20-18 record in NCAA tournament play, recording at least one win in 11 of 18 regional appearances (with a game played). Below is a game-by-game listing of WWU in NCAA Tournament play with the regional host site listed next to the year:

 

1998-99 (Davis, CA): 

Defeated Seattle Pacific, 77-69 (OT) 

Lost to Montana State Billings, 70-48 

 

1999-2000 (Pomona, CA):

Defeated Alaska Anchorage, 78-59 

Defeated Cal Poly Pomona, 84-66 

Defeated Slippery Rock, 84-67 – Elite Eight

Lost to Northern Kentucky, 80-74 – Final Four 

 

2000-01 (Pomona, CA): 

Defeated Central Washington, 74-66 

Lost to Cal Poly Pomona, 91-85 

 

2001-02 (Pomona, CA):

Defeated Sonoma State, 71-60 

Lost to Cal Poly Pomona, 71-70 

 

2002-03 (Seattle, WA):

Lost to Northwest Nazarene, 83-79 

 

2003-04 (Seattle, WA):

Defeated Sonoma State, 85-71 

Lost to Seattle Pacific, 80-66 

 

2004-05 (Seattle, WA):

Defeated CSU Dominguez Hills, 82-74 (OT) 

Lost to Chico State, 85-75 

 

2005-06 (Bellingham, WA):

Defeated Northwest Nazarene, 66-54 

Lost to Seattle Pacific, 70-50 

 

2006-07 (La Jolla, CA):

Lost to UC San Diego, 78-45 

 

2008-09 (Seattle, WA):

Lost to Humboldt State, 74-64 

 

2009-10 (Seattle, WA):

Lost to Chico State, lost 79-68 

 

2010-11 (Pomona, CA):

Lost to Alaska Anchorage, 55-48 

 

2011-12 (La Jolla, CA):

Defeated Cal State Monterey Bay, 65-58 

Lost to UC San Diego, 81-66 

 

2012-13 (Bellingham, WA):

Defeated Academy of Art, 70-50 

Defeated Cal State Monterey Bay, 71-63 

Defeated Simon Fraser, 75-58 

Defeated Nova Southeastern, 80-76 (OT) – Elite Eight

Lost to Ashland, 66-54 – Final Four 

 

2013-14 (Pomona, CA):

Lost to Simon Fraser, 77-70

 

2016-17 (Anchorage, AK):

Defeated Cal State East Bay, 74-48

Lost to Cal Baptist, 80-68

 

2019-20 (Honolulu, HI):

vs. Alaska Anchorage, DNP (COVID-19)

 

2021-22 (Hayward, CA):

Defeated Alaska Anchorage, 76-64

Defeated Central Washington, 64-58

Defeated Cal State East Bay, 73-59 – West Regional Final

Defeated Valdosta State, 58-55 – Elite Eight

Defeated North Georgia, 74-68 – Final Four

Lost to Glenville State, 85-72 – National Championship Game

 

2022-23 (Carson, CA):

Lost to Azusa Pacific, 71-53

 

The Vikings went 24-4 overall, reaching the 20-win mark for the 37th time in the 52-year history of the program, and 23rd time in 32 seasons under head coach Carmen Dolfo.

 

Dating back to the start of the 2019-20 season, the Vikings have combined to go 77-19 (.802) with a 40-12 record in GNAC play (.769). WWU went 25-6 during the Elite 8 2021-22 season and went 24-4 during the 2022-23 season.

 

One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, recording a 20-win season in 10 of the last 13 full seasons, and 37 times in the 52-year history of the program. WWU has 23 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 667 winning percentage and 20-win seasons. The Vikings have reached the NCAA II Tournament in 19 of 24 possible seasons at the Division II level with three trips to the Elite Eight and played in the 2022 national championship game. The program has 1,099 all-time wins in the 52-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.