BELLINGHAM, Wash. (Mar. 8) - In their first ever meeting with the University of Alaska Anchorage in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships, the Central Washington University women's basketball team fell victim to relentless pressure from the Seawolves, falling 72-50 on Friday afternoon.
"We struggled in the first half, specifically in the second quarter," CWU head coach Randi Richardson-Thornley said. " I'm really proud of how our team competed in the second half. We were able to win the second half by one. That's what I wanted for our team, to come out and compete and not shy away and back down. When we face adversity, we want our girls to fight back. Whether its at practice, in a game or in life, we want them to not back down or shy away from anything that's challenging."
The Seawolves (28-1) challenged the Wildcats (18-11) to shoot the ball in the opening stages of the first quarter. Kassidy Malcolm answered by making a three-pointer to get the Wildcats on the board. Taylor Shaw tied the game at six when she hit a three-pointer of her own. Kaelie Flores made a shot from the top of the key that gave the Wildcats an 8-6 lead with 5:56 left in the opening period.
The Seawolves implored a full court press coming out of the first media timeout. The Wildcats committed three consecutive turnovers. The Seawolves were able to take a 13-9 lead with 1:55 left in the quarter. Alexis Pana splashed home a three-pointer, cutting the lead to one. The Seawolves led 15-12 at the end of the opening period.
The Seawolves defense continued to suffocate the Wildcats. They opened the second quarter by going on a 13-0 run, capped by a layup from Kimani Fernandez-Roy.
Samantha Bowman tried to lift the Wildcats out of their offensive funk from the first part of the second quarter. Bowman scored four straight points for the team, changing the score to 27-16 in favor of the Seawolves.
In the closing seconds of the first half, Conference Player of the Year Hannah Wandersee was able to get an offensive rebound from a free-throw. She quickly got the ball up, off the backboard and in, beating the first half buzzer. The creative shot gave the Seawolves a 35-16 lead at halftime.
The Wildcats struggled throughout the first half, going just 6-for-25 from the field. The Seawolves forced the Wildcats into committing 16 turnovers and were able to cash in for 17 points off of turnovers.
After halftime, Brianna Phiakhamngon rained home a three-pointer from the top of the key with 4:07 left in the third quarter. Soon after, Malcolm came alive. She scored six straight points for the Wildcats. Phiakhamngon hit a baseline runner to cap a strong offensive quarter for the duo. They teamed up to score 14 of the Wildcats' 20 points in the third quarter.
The Seawolves were able to combine their defensive pressure with consistent offense. As a team they went 28-for-63 from the field for the game. Their bench contributed 30 points in Friday's win.
"Anchorage is tough," Richardson-Thornley said. "They force you to speed up. They play physical for the whole game. It's a tough task. I don't feel like the press hurt as much as what they do in the half court when they swipe behind. We gave up too many offensive boards as well."
Malcolm captured her ninth double-double of the season in Friday's semifinal contest. She led the team with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Phiakhamngon's offensive surge in the third quarter made her one of the Wildcat leaders, scoring seven points. Flores had a nice game, scoring seven points as well.
The Wildcats performed well as a team during the regular season. The Wildcats ranked third in conference, averaging 74.9 points per game. The team shot 46.2 percent from the field. They dished out 17.4 assists per game, second most in conference. The Wildcats were the best team at blocking shots in conference, averaging 4.5 blocked shots per game. The team pulled down 26.7 defensive rebounds per game, second best.
"Looking back on our season, we had a great year and the program has taken a step forward," Richardson-Thornley said. "We are sad to see Sadie Mensing and Aliyah Pana go, but both of those players have given so much to the program. They've left it in a better place. Going to miss those two tremendously. I'm really proud of what we've done this year and the step we've taken forward."
