Box Score

        Box score, play-by-play
 
SEATTLE – Throughout the past week in practice, defense got even more focus than usual for the Seattle Pacific Falcons.
 
That came in especially handy on Saturday.
 
Suzanna Ohlsen scored 20 points, Aubree Callen had 19, and SPU limited Montana State Billings to just 27 percent shooting for the game , quashing a late-game comeback effort by the Yellowjacets to secure a 64-55 Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball victory.
               
On Homecoming Day in Brougham Pavilion, the No. 21-ranked Falcons (17-3, 9-3 GNAC) won their third straight and maintained their hold on second place in the standings with six games left. The top two teams at the end of the season receive first-round byes for the conference tournament.
 
The Yellowjackets (12-10, 4-8 GNAC) did not hit double-digit field goals in either half on Saturday. They were 9 of 25 (36 percent) through the first 20 minutes, and just 6 of 30 (20 percent) through the second 20, finishing the game at 15 of 55 (27.3 percent).

It's the third time this season the Falcons have kept an opponent below 30 percent for a game.





"Defensively, we played really, really hard," head coach Julie Heisey said. "Suzanna, Stacey (Lukasiewicz), Jordan (McPhee), they totally frustrated their ballhandlers. That's why (the Jackets) had to bring in different people to bring the ball up. We did a really good job defensively, and I was very pleased with that."
 
After playing five of their last seven at home, Seattle Pacific returns to the road next week, visiting Central Washington in Ellensburg on Thursday at 7:00 p.m., and Northwest Nazarene in Nampa, Idaho, next Saturday at 1:00 p.m. Pacific time.

 

Senior center Maddey Pflaumer added 11 points, four rebounds and two blocked shots on Saturday for the Falcons, who finished a two-game season sweep of Montana State Billings. Senior guard Betsy Kingma (Bellevue, Wash. / Newport HS) had a career-high nine rebounds, beating her previous mark of seven set against San Francisco State when she was a sophomore in 2010-11.
 
Up just 37-35 with 18:48 left in the game, redshirt senior guard Callen (Jerome, Idaho) hit a short shot from the left corner, then took the ball out of backcourt all the way to the foul line and drained a wide-open jumper for 41-35.
 
A 3-pointer by senior point guard Ohlsen (Monroe, Wash. / Monroe HS), back-to-back baskets by Pflaumer (Isssaquah, Wash. / Issaquah HS), and another trey by Ohlsen more than offset three points by Billings – all on free throws – to leave the Falcons ahead 51-38 with 10:19 to go.
 
During that stretch, SPU forced the Yellowjackets into 0-of-13 shooting from the field.

 

"No question we were a lot better defensively. We just didn't get the same flow on offense," Heisey said. "It's a long season, and I think not having played Thursday, as much as it helped us get better, we just lost a little bit of our flow. But in the end, it helps us."
 
MSUB got as close as seven at 56-49 with 1:13 remaining, and had a chance to get even closer when SPU lost the ball out of bounds under the Jackets basket. But extra defensive pressure on the ensuing inbounds pass forced the Jackets to lob it toward midcourt. Ohlsen leaped to intercept the ball and took it all the way for a lay-up and a 58-49 advantage with 1:07 to go.
 
Kayleen Goggins pumped in 21 points for defending conference champion Billings.
 
Callen grabbed seven rebounds to go along with her 19 points.
 
SPU used an 11-0 run early in the first half to turn a 5-3 deficit into a 14-5 lead and never trailed again. That grew to as many as 10 points on four occasions, the last time at 25-15 with 6:11 to go.
 
But Montana State Billings went on a 13-4 run to get it all the way down to one at 29-28 with 2:21 to go before halftime. The Falcons took a 35-30 lead into the locker room at halftime.
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Saturday, February 7, 2015
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
(No. 21) Seattle Pacific 64, Montana State Billings 55
 
MONTANA STATE BILLINGS (12-10, 4-8 GNAC)
Kayleen Goggins 6-15 9-10 21, Annie DePuydt 5-11 0-0 11, Alisha Breen 1-7 7-8 9, Quinn Peoples 2-9 2-2 8, Monica Grimsrud 1-5 2-2 5, RyleeKane 0-5 1-2 1, Marissa Van Atta 0-2 0-0 0, Vanessa Stavish 0-1 0-0 0, Courtney Henry 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 15-55 21-24 55.
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (17-3, 9-3 GNAC)
Suzanna Ohlsen 7-17 4-4 20, Aubree Callen 6-15 6-6 19, Maddey Pflaumer 4-7 3-3 11, Betsy Kingma 2-7 0-0 5, Courtney Hollander 2-5 0-0 4, Stacey Lukasiewics 1-2 1-2 3, Molly Grager 1-3 0-0 2, Jordan McPHee 0-1 0-0 0, Hannah Rodrigues 0-2 0-0 0, Rachel Shim 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-59 14-15 64.
 
Montana State Billings      30           25           -- 55
Seattle Pacific                     35           29           -- 64
 
3-point goals –MSUB 4-17 (Peoples 2-8, DePuydt 1-2, Grimsrud 1-1, Stavish 0-1, Kane 0-1, Breen 0-1, Goggins 0-3), SPU 4-15 (Ohlsen 2-7, Callan 1-2, Kingma 1-5, Hollander 0-1). Fouled out – None. Rebounds – MSUB 39 (Breen 8), SPU 38 (Kingma 9). Assists – MSUB 9 (Breen 4), SPU 11 (Kingma 4). Turnovers – MSUB 18, SPU 18. Total fouls – MSUB 19, SPU 20. Technical fouls – None. Attendance – 325.
 
 
Next game
Seattle Pacific at Central Washington
Thursday, Feb. 12, 7:00 p.m.
Nicholson Pavilion / Ellensburg, Wash.