ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Central Washington University Women's Basketball Team (2-0) will turn their attention to the GNAC-PacWest Crossover this weekend as they travel to Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, Idaho for a pair of games.
GAME INFORMATION:
Friday, November 21
Central Washington vs. RV Vanguard
4:00 p.m. PST
Johnson Sports Center
Nampa, Idaho
WATCH ($):
HERE
LIVE STATS:
HERE
TICKETS:
HERE
Saturday, November 22
Central Washington vs. Westmont
12:00 p.m. PST
Johnson Sports Center
Nampa, Idaho
WATCH ($):
HERE
LIVE STATS:
HERE
TICKETS:
HERE
QUOTING CWU HEAD WOMEN'S BASKETBALL COACH RANDI RICHARDSON:
"We're excited for another opportunity to hit the floor this weekend. These are two very high caliber teams with Hall of Fame coaches. It's going to take a great level of effort and execution to have the success we want."
LAST WEEKEND:
The Wildcats traveled down to California and earned a pair of wins in their season-opening weekend.
Asher Cai was tabbed the GNAC Player of the Week after her performance on the weekend.
They first defeated Cal State East Bay 58-51 where Cai led the way with 16 points followed by
Capri Sims and
Fiona Snashall who each added 14 points. Snashall led the defensive side of the ball with nine rebounds, two blocks, and a steal while Sims added seven rebounds and a team-high two steals. Cai, Sims, and
Jordy DeMott led the crimson and black with three assists each. The Pioneers saw Taylor Eldredge lead their squad with 18 points. CWU outrebounded the Pioneers 37-17 and shot 48.9 percent from the floor, 21.1 percent from three, and 57.1 percent at the free-throw line.
The 'Cats then swept the weekend, holding off hosting Cal Poly Humboldt by a 73-66 score after a late run by the 'Jacks made it a one-point game with a minute to go. CWU was once again led by Cai who dropped 31 points and added seven rebounds, nine assists, and two steals. Sims added a double-double performance with 24 points and 10 rebounds to go with one assist and one steal. Snashall tacked on nine points and added two rebounds, one assist, and one block. The 'Cats outrebounded CPH 28-23 and finished the game shooting 46.9 percent from the floor, 31.8 percent from three, and was a perfect 20-20 on free-throw attempts.
LAST MEETINGS:
CWU met both opponents last season down at Westmont in Santa Barbara, Calif. The 'Cats escaped Vanguard by a 70-66 score before turning around and defeating Westmont 66-55 to conclude the California trip.
Against the Lions, CWU saw Cai drop 28 points and add nine rebounds, three assists, and one steal.
Sunny Huerta added 18 points, five rebounds, four assists, and two steals. Vanguard was led by Halle Si'i who had 17 points and four rebounds with Aryanna Hudson adding 16 points off the bench to go with three rebounds and five assists. Sarah Matossian added 12 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and one block for VU.
Huerta paced CWU against Westmont with 24 points, five rebounds, one assist, and one steal while
Aliyah Finch had a career night with 17 points, five rebounds, and one assist. Cai tacked on 14 points go to with five rebounds, one block, and one steal while Sims added five points, 13 rebounds, and one steal. Westmont saw Bailey Fong drop 17 points off the bench while Noemie Bariteau and Sage Kramer added 15 and 12 points respectfully. Lisa Kiefer grabbed 12 rebounds for the Warriors.
SCOUTING THE LIONS:
Vanguard is 2-0 on the season after defeating two fellow GNAC schools last weekend. They first took down Montana State Billings by a 65-54 score before capping the weekend with a 76-41 victory over Simon Fraser.
Emma Schaaf is leading VU with 16 points per game followed by Kayla Boozer who's adding 11 points per game. Boozer is also leading the defensive unit with eight rebounds per game and two blocks totaled after the first weekend. Kaylee Byon has added 9.5 points per game, leads the Lions with 11 assists, and is tied with Micaela Hanning with four steals.
Concluding the opening weekend, the Lions are averaging 70.5 points per game and only giving up 47.5 points to their opponents. They're shooting 45.38 percent from the floor, 30.95 percent from three, and 64.52 percent from the free-throw line. They held MSUB and SFU to 27.1 percent shooting from the floor, 20.59 percent shooting from three, and 60 percent shooting from the free-throw line. They outrebounded MSUB and SFU 42 rebounds per game to the 36.5 they allowed. They forced their two opponents to commit 36 turnovers while only committing 29 turnovers themselves.
SCOUTING THE WARRIORS:
Westmont is also 2-0 on the season after hosting the PacWest/GNAC Conference Crossover last weekend where they also defeated Simon Fraser and Montana State Billings. They poured it on SFU, winning 92-54, then backed it up with a stout defensive performance to take down MSUB 63-38.
Mariah Brown, Sage Kramer, and Skyler Knight are all averaging double-figures after the opening weekend at 12.5, 11.5, and 10.5 points per game, respectfully. Lisa Kiefer has grabbed 9.5 rebounds per game while Bariteau has the most steals at five and Molly Garnand has two blocks to her name. Brown has the most assists with nine.
The Warriors are averaging 77.5 points per game and are giving up 46 points to their opponents. They're shooting 45.2 percent from the floor, 39.1 percent from three, and 86.2 percent from the free-throw line. They held SFU and MSUB to 30.1 percent shooting from the floor, 22.6 percent shooting from three, and 69.7 percent shooting at the charity stripe. They outrebounded SFU and MSUB 44 to 26 rebounds per game. They slightly edged out the two GNAC squads in the turnover department, turning the ball over 29 times while forcing 32 turnovers.
UP NEXT:
The Wildcats will turn their attention to the Lynda Goodrich Classic, hosted by Western Washington University. They will first face the San Francisco State Gators (2-0) on Friday, November 28 at noon and conclude the weekend against the Mary Marauders (6-0) on Saturday, November 29 at noon with both games happening inside Carver Gym.
