NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The Western Washington University women's basketball team had its seven-game winning streak snapped Saturday falling in overtime to New Mexico Highlands 71-68.
WWU finished the two-day tournament hosted at the College of Southern Nevada with a 1-1 record after defeating Eastern New Mexico 44-40 on Friday.
The Vikings slipped to 10-3 on the season after winning their last seven games. WWU led by as many as 10 points late in the third quarter at 41-31. The Cowgirls out-scored the Vikings 18-13 in the third quarter and forced overtime with a 20-17 advantage in the fourth quarter. NMHU held a 10-7 advantage in the five-minute overtime period to gain the three-point victory to improve to 5-6 on the season.
WWU was led by another double-double from senior forward Olivia Hodges, who scored a team-high 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Hodges has recorded a double-double in 10 of 13 games this season. Junior guards Libby Stump (14 points), Demi Dykstra (12 points) and Joy Haltom (11 points) also scored in double digits for the Vikings.
Western held a 61-59 lead after Haltom hit one-of-two free throws with 13 seconds remaining, setting up a last possession chance for the Cowgirls to tie the game. Kapiolani Anitielu made a layup with eight seconds on the clock to tie the game forcing overtime. NMHU scored eight of its 10 overtime points from the charity stripe to secure the victory.
Kapiolani Anitielu scored a game-high 22 points on 9-for-20 shooting and Aniya Johnson added 16 points with 7-for-10 shooting from the free throw line.
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NCAA Basketball
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1st
|
2nd
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3rd
|
4th
|
OT
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Final
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Western Washington (10-3)
|
13
|
18
|
13
|
17
|
7
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68
|
|
New Mexico Highlands (5-6)
|
18
|
5
|
18
|
20
|
10
|
71
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The Vikings (10-3, 2-0 GNAC) will take some time off for the holiday break and return to action in 2026 restarting conference play hosting Western Oregon on New Year's Day (3 pm) and Saint Martin's on January 3 (5 pm) in Carver Gym. WWU is off to a 2-0 start to conference play. All links to follow the Vikings on the road will be posted at WWUVikings.com.
Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and New Mexico Highlands:
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COMPARISON
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WWU
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NMHU
|
|
Points
|
68
|
71
|
|
Field Goal Pct.
|
.354 (23-65)
|
.429 (24-56)
|
|
3 Point FG Pct.
|
.267 (4-15)
|
.308 (4-13)
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|
Free Throw Pct.
|
.643 (18-28)
|
.760 (19-25)
|
|
Rebounds
|
43
|
38
|
|
Offensive Rebounds
|
14
|
6
|
|
Assists
|
14
|
19
|
|
Turnovers
|
10
|
10
|
|
Steals
|
5
|
7
|
|
Blocked Shots
|
2
|
3
|
|
Time Led
|
29:38
|
13:03
|
|
Points off Turnovers
|
17
|
17
|
|
Points in the Paint
|
30
|
26
|
|
Bench Points
|
13
|
45
|
|
Fouls
|
21
|
23
|
|
Biggest Lead
|
10
|
9
|
|
Lead Changes: 6 Times Tied: 3
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Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown for the 2025-26 season:
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RECORD BREAKDOWN
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|
Overall
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10-3
|
|
GNAC
|
2-0
|
|
Non-Conference
|
8-3
|
|
Streak
|
L1
|
|
Home
|
2-0
|
|
Away
|
3-0
|
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Neutral
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5-3
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vs. Ranked Teams
|
1-1
|
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Leading at Half
|
6-2
|
|
Trailing at Half
|
3-1
|
|
Tied at Half
|
1-1
|
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Overtime
|
0-1
|
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BY UNIFORM
|
|
White
|
4-1
|
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Black
|
3-1
|
|
Light Blue
|
3-1
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SEASON SCHEDULE & RESULTS
Here is a game-by-game look at the 2025-26 schedule and results:
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Record: 10-3 GNAC: 2-0 Home: 2-0 Away: 3-0 Neutral: 5-3
|
|
Date
|
Opponent
|
|
Score
|
Top Scorer
|
Top Rebounder
|
|
D2 Canadian Tip-Off Classic (Langley, BC)
|
|
10/31
|
Colorado Mesa(#21)
|
L
|
65-62
|
Stump (22)
|
Hodges (15)
|
|
11/1
|
Minot State
|
W
|
69-64
|
Stump (33)
|
Dykstra (7)
|
|
11/2
|
Parkside
|
W
|
54-49
|
Hodges (12)
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Hodges/Haltom (11)
|
|
GNAC-CCAA Challenge (Seattle, WA)
|
|
11/14
|
Cal St. Dominguez Hills
|
W
|
68-46
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Garrison (19)
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Hodges/Haltom (7)
|
|
11/15
|
Cal State LA
|
L
|
79-78
|
Hodges (28)
|
Hodges (12)
|
|
GNAC/PacWest Challenge (Irvine, CA
|
|
11/21
|
@CUI
|
W
|
86-57
|
Dykstra (23)
|
Hodges (16)
|
|
11/22
|
Azusa Pacific
|
W
|
82-65
|
Hodges (37)
|
Hodges (17)
|
|
Lynda Goodrich Classic (Bellingham, WA)
|
|
11/28
|
Mary
|
W
|
72-63
|
Hodges (23)
|
Hodges (18)
|
|
11/29
|
San Francisco State
|
W
|
76-59
|
Dykstra (21)
|
Hodges (13)
|
|
Great Northwest Athletic Conference
|
|
12/3
|
@MSU Billings
|
W
|
59-56
|
Hodges (29)
|
Hodges (10)
|
|
12/5
|
@Seattle Pacific
|
W
|
67-43
|
Hodges (21)
|
Hodges (17)
|
|
Great Western Shootout (Las Vegas, NV)
|
|
12/19
|
Eastern New Mexico
|
W
|
44-40
|
Stump/Hodges (9)
|
Hodges (16)
|
|
12/20
|
New Mexico Highlands
|
L
|
71-68(OT)
|
Hodges (17)
|
Hodges (12)
|
|
Great Northwest Athletic Conference
|
|
1/1
|
Western Oregon
|
|
|
3:00 pm
|
|
|
1/3
|
Saint Martin's
|
|
|
5:00 pm
|
|
|
1/8
|
@Northwest Nazarene
|
|
|
5:15 pm MT
|
|
|
1/10
|
@Central Washington
|
|
|
5:00 pm
|
|
|
1/15
|
Alaska Fairbanks
|
|
|
7:00 pm
|
|
|
1/17
|
Alaska Anchorage
|
|
|
5:00 pm
|
|
|
1/24
|
Simon Fraser
|
|
|
3:00 pm
|
|
|
1/29
|
@Saint Martin's
|
|
|
5:15 pm
|
|
|
1/31
|
@Western Oregon
|
|
|
2:00 pm
|
|
|
2/5
|
Central Washington
|
|
|
7:00 pm
|
|
|
2/7
|
Northwest Nazarene
|
|
|
5:00 pm
|
|
|
2/12
|
@Alaska Anchorage
|
|
|
7:00 pm AKT
|
|
|
2/14
|
@Alaska Fairbanks
|
|
|
3:00 pm AKT
|
|
|
2/21
|
@Simon Fraser
|
|
|
5:15 pm
|
|
|
2/26
|
Seattle Pacific
|
|
|
7:00 pm
|
|
|
2/28
|
MSU Billings
|
|
|
5:00 pm
|
|
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GNAC Basketball Championships – March 5-7 in Bellingham, WA (Carver Gym)
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