Box score, play-by-play
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SEATTLE -- Daesha Henderson is doing a lot more this year that doesn't make it into the box score.
But she's also still doing plenty of things that do.
Henderson scored 13 points and collected a career-high eight rebounds on Saturday, and Megan Hoisington led the way with 14 points, powering 19th-ranked Seattle Pacific to a 64-44 Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball victory against Western Oregon in Brougham Pavilion.
Senior guard Henderson (Snohomish, Wash./Snohomish HS) surpassed her previous career high of seven rebounds, which she had hit three times, most recently on Feb. 4 at Central Washington.
“Coach (Julie van Beek) gives a goal before every game -- if a certain number of guards and posts get five rebounds, and we get a team treat,” Henderson said. “That gives us some motivation.” Then she broke into a big grin when adding, “Megan got mad because I ripped a couple out of her hands.”
Henderson hit 6 of 12 from the field and also had two assists, one steal and no turnovers in 25 minutes of action, along with her usual contributions toward setting the tone of the Falcons' floor show.
That last part is a role Henderson said she enjoys playing.
“There's a lot that doesn't show up on the stat sheet,” she said. “I'm trying to be a team leader, both emotionally and by example. I like it -- I really do.”
Senior forward Hoisington (Bremerton, Wash./Central Kitsap HS) drained six of her 11 shots and grabbed five rebounds on Saturday as the Falcons (18-3, 9-1 GNAC) easily won the boards, 35-27. Junior center Melissa Reich (Bothell, Wash./Bellevue Christian HS) added eight points, eight rebounds, a career-high six steals, two assists and one blocked shot.
“Daesha and Megan were Daesha and Megan -- very consistent,” van Beek said. “But I loved to see Melissa Reich's effort. That was a nice boost.”
Seattle Pacific also had one of its best shooting days of the season, hitting 50.9 percent (28 of 55). The Falcons, who are the 10th-toughest team to shoot against in all of NCAA Division II, limited Western Oregon (10-15, 5-6 GNAC) to just 32.6 percent (15 of 46).
All of those factors taken together -- the decided edge on the boards, strong shooting and solid defensive effort (four of SPU's last five opponents have shot less than 35 percent) haven't escaped van Beek's notice.
“The things we're working on in practice is where we're seeing results,” she said.
The Falcons also threw a defensive blanket on WOU's Katie Torland. The senior forward came in averaging 16.8 points per game, but got only six on Saturday, hitting just 2 of 11 from the floor.
“That's a big deal, because she's a good player,” van Beek said.
After hitting just two of its first eight shots in the game, SPU drained nine of its next 13 on the way to building a 23-11 lead with 7:11 left in the first half. It was 28-17 at halftime, and the Falcons then scored the first six points of the second half while keeping the Wolves off the board until the 15:43 mark. Western Oregon never got closer than 12 the rest of the game.
As has been the trend of late, the Falcons helped themselves by cutting way down on turnovers during the second half. After a dozen in the first half on Saturday, they had just six during the final 20 minutes. Their total of 18 gave them their fifth straight game and sixth of the last seven below 20.
“Our kids respond to a challenge,” van Beek said. “At halftime, we have a chance to reflect, and the good thing is we've done a good job of rising to what we need to do.”
No one got into double-figure scoring for the Wolves. Sara Zahler led the way with nine points.
Seattle Pacific has beaten Western Oregon 26 straight times, including a 75-62 decision in Monmouth, Ore., in the GNAC opener on Jan. 9. The series began in 1981-82, and the Wolves won the first two games, but have not prevailed since then.
The Falcons hit the road to Montana State Billings next Wednesday at 6 p.m. PST. They are back in Brougham next Saturday at 7 p.m. for what is looming as a first-place showdown against Western Washington. That also is Pink Zone Night in support of the fight against breast cancer.
NCAA Women's Basketball
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Brougham Pavilion/Seattle, Wash.
(No. 19) Seattle Pacific 64, Western Oregon 44
WESTERN OREGON (10-15, 5-6 GNAC)
Zahler 3-10 2-2 9; Clifford 2-3 4-9 8; Whitsett 2-5 2-2 8; Bellando 3-6 1-2 7; Torland 2-11 2-2 6; Richardson 1-4 0-0 2; Corder 1-4 0-0 2; Wilson 1-2 0-0 2; Shearer 0-1 0-0 0; White 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 15-46 11-17 44.
SEATTLE PACIFIC (18-3, 9-1 GNAC)
Hoisington 6-11 2-2 14; Henderson 6-12 0-0 13; Reich 3-5 2-3 8; Rohrbach 3-6 0-0 6; Murray 2-3 0-0 5; Gorman 2-3 0-0 5; Sims 2-4 0-0 5; Maloney 2-7 0-0 4; Thralls 1-1 0-0 2; Teng 1-2 0-0 2; Reimer 0-0 0-0 0; Smith 0-0 0-0 0; Harazin 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 28-55 4-5 64.
Western Oregon................ 17 27 - 44
Seattle Pacific.................... 28 36 - 64
3-point goals--WOU 3-13 (Whitsett 2-4; Zahler 1-3; Torland 0-3; Richardson 0-2; Corder 0-1), SPU 4-14 (Gorman 1-2; Murray 1-2; Henderson 1-3; Sims 1-2; Harazin 0-1; Maloney 0-3; Rohrbach 0-1). Fouled out--WOU-None, SPU-None. Rebounds--WOU 27 (Torland 7), SPU 35 (Reich 8; Henderson 8). Assists--WOU 7 (Bellando 2; Wilson 2), SPU 18 (Rohrbach 4). Total fouls--WOU 10, SPU 16. Technical fouls--WOU-None, SPU-None. Att.-236.
