THE SCHEDULE
Thursday, Feb. 23               Concordia-Portland at Seattle Pacific, 7:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Saturday, Feb. 25                Western Oregon at Seattle Pacific, 2:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion (2,650) / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
 
        Weekly release, with complete updated stats (PDF)

SEATTLE – It has all come down to this for the Seattle Pacific Falcons:
 
Win one game this week, and return to postseason play after missing out last year. Win both games, and improve the chances of getting a higher seed.
 
That's the task ahead as SPU prepares to close the regular season with Great Northwest Athletic Conference home games against Concordia-Portland and Western Oregon. The Cavaliers are in town on Thursday night at 7:00, and the Wolves visit on Saturday afternoon for Senior Day at 2:00.
 
The Falcons (17-9, 9-9 GNAC) will be trying to halt a four-game skid and gain some momentum ahead of next week's GNAC Tournament and a possible bid to the NCAA West Regionals.
 
They will have that opportunity against two teams they have not seen since beginning GNAC play on the road during the first weekend of December. SPU won both of those, 66-51 at Concordia, and 68-59 at Western Oregon.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
A live Webcast and live stats available from this week's action. The Webcast will be through Stretch Internet, the official Internet provider of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference. Veteran broadcaster Tom Gialanella will be on the play-by-play. The appropriate links can be found at the top of this story.
 
MAGIC NUMBER DOWN TO ONE
Although the Falcons came up short on both games of their Alaska road trip last week, they did get some help from other teams toward their bid to make the GNAC Tournament.
  Central Washington and Northwest Nazarene both defeated Concordia in Portland. That means SPU needs just one more win or one more Concordia loss – and can make both happen on Thursday night in Brougham Pavilion against the Cavaliers – to secure a trip to Lacey next week.
 
SPU, Alaska Fairbanks, and Northwest Nazarene start the week tied for fourth place at 9-9. Various tiebreakers ultimately could come into play to determine which team get which seed. For the record, Fairbanks has the toughest final-week schedule, visiting Simon Fraser and Western Washington. NNU has the Central Washington-Montana State Billing combo, while Seattle Pacific plays the two Oregon schools.
 
From among the Falcons, Nanooks and Crusaders, the two that finish fourth and fifth in the standings will play each other in next Thursday's first round at Saint Martin's. The one that finishes sixth gets Simon Fraser in a first-round game.
 
SENIOR DAY SET FOR SATURDAY
The SPU senior threesome of Brianna Lasconia, Stacey Lukasiewicz, and Hannah Rodrigues will be honored prior to the start of Saturday's 2:00 p.m. game against Western Oregon.

 
Lasconia

(Seattle / Shorecrest HS) is in her fifth year with the Falcons, having missed the entire 2014-15 season while recovering from knee surgery. She starts the week averaging 6.4 points, and already has set a single-season best for steals with 33. On Feb. 4 at Montana State Billings, Lasconia scored the 500th point of her career.

 

Lukasiewicz (Centennial, Colo.) does the little things that add up to bigger things: drawing the tough defensive assignment, leading the team in assists, or providing leadership on the floor and in the locker room. She is a three-time GNAC All-Academic award winner, and has won the team's Most Improved and Most Inspirational awards.

 

Rodrigues (Eugene, Ore.) has played in every possible game of her SPU career – all 109 of them heading into this week. Last week in Anchorage, she tied the school record for single-game free throw accuracy by hitting 13 out of 14. During this season, Rodrigues has scored her 500th career point and grabbed her 400th rebound. The applied human biology major is a three-time GNAC All-Academic honoree.
 
TICKET TALK
Tickets will be available at the door of Brougham Pavilion, with windows opening 60 minutes prior to tip-off time. Prices are $9 for adult reserved, $6 for adult general admission, and $3 for youths, students with identification, and senior citizens age 65 and older. SPU students, faculty and staff members with proper school identification are free.
 
WEST REGION RANKINGS
Seattle Pacific slipped to No. 9 in this week's NCAA West Region rankings that were released on Wednesday afternoon. This is the second of three sets that will be released prior to the announcement of the NCAA Tournament field on Sunday, March 5.
 
Last week, the Falcons were in the crucial No. 8 and final regional qualifying spot. Cal State East Bay now occupies that place. Alaska Anchorage, Cal Baptist, Western Washington, Simon Fraser, and UC San Diego retained the same Nos. 1-5 spots they had last week. Point Loma Nazarene leapfrogged Hawaii Pacific into No. 6, with the Sharks now No. 7. Cal Poly Pomona is No. 10.
 
Although 10 teams are in the rankings, only the top eight on the final list make the NCAAs. That group will include the three conference tournament champions as automatic qualifiers. Then, the five highest-ranked teams among the non-champions fill out the bracket.

 
SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- If the Falcons win both games this week and wind up in fourth place, they will finish one spot higher than they were picked in the GNAC preseason poll.
-- SPU also closed last season against Concordia and Western Oregon, albeit on the road. The Falcons won both games, 64-49 at CU, and 55-40 at WOU.
-- The last 12 games for Seattle Pacific have been a series of streaks: four losses at home from Jan. 9-18, four wins on the road from Jan. 26-Feb. 4, then four losses – two at home, two on the road – from Feb. 9 to now.
-- The Falcons are going for season sweeps of both series, having defeated Concordia in the season opener, 68-51, followed by a 68-59 win at Western Oregon.
-- In the game at Western Oregon, junior guard Jordan McPhee recorded a double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds, her only one of the season and the second of her career.
-- In that same game, junior forward Courtney Hollander scored a career-high 23 points.
-- In the Concordia game, it was Hollander with a double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds, one of five she has this year and 14 for her career.
-- Seattle Pacific currently has three season sweeps, going 2-0 against Central Washington, Saint Martin's, and Montana State Billings.
-- The Falcons are 9-5 at home. Concordia is 4-5 in road games (5-6 overall away from Portland), and Western Oregon is 2-8 in road games (2-9 overall away from Monmouth).
-- SPU has won all eight games against Concordia.
-- Hollander, who missed both of last week's games in Alaska with an injury, is still the Falcons' leading scorer by average points at 12.2. But McPhee (11.1 average) now has more total points, 288 to 280.
-- The Falcons have co-leaders in assists, as Stacey Lukasiewicz and Rachel Shim each have 59.
-- SPU is No. 11 in national free throw shooting at 77.7 percent. That is the team's highest ranking in any statistical category this week.
-- Coach Julie Heisey is 3-0 vs. Concordia and coach Sean Kelly. She is 22-1 vs. Western Oregon, including 6-1 against fourth-year coach Holli Howard-Carpenter.
 
SCOUTING THE CONCORDIA CAVALIERS: 10-16, 7-11 GNAC (tie 7th)
All-time series: SPU leads, 8-0. Current series streak: SPU won 8. Last time: SPU 68, CU 51 (Dec. 3, 2016 at Portland). Cavaliers on the Web. Cavaliers in a nutshell: A late-season surge that included three straight victories earlier this month has kept Concordia on the fringes of making the GNAC Tournament, although it is on the outside looking in to start this final week. The only Cavalier with a double-digit scoring average is 5-foot-9 junior guard Danielle Hartzog at 11.7 points per game. She went for 21 – her second-highest total of the season – in the December game against the Falcons. But on any given night, any number of CU players can fill up the hoop, as seven different ones have set the scoring pace throughout the season. Sophomore Bailey Cartwright, a 6-1 forward, averages 8.7 per game, and is Concordia's top rebounder at 6.9 and best shooter from the field at 44.2 percent. Sophomore Keesha Sarman, a 5-6 guard, is one of the best passers in the GNAC, with 96 assists to rank No. 7 at 3.7 per game.
 
SCOUTING THE WESTERN OREGON WOLVES: 7-18, 3-15 GNAC (10th).
All-time series: SPU leads, 39-4. Current series streak: SPU won 4. Last time: SPU 68, WOU 59 (Dec. 1, 2016 at Monmouth). Wolves on the Web.
Wolves in a nutshell: Western Oregon starts the week looking to stop an eight-game skid. The last win for the Wolves was 78-75 at Northwest Nazarene on Jan. 21, when 5-foot-10 junior guard Sydney Azorr went for a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds. She is averaging 10.3 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. Leading the way for WOU is 5-9 junior guard Shelby Snook at 13.3 points. She got 19, along with a team-high eight rebounds, in the December game against SPU. When Snook isn't scoring, she's finding open teammates, with a team-high 76 assists. Snook and 5-11 junior forward Jasmine Miller each average 5.1 rebounds to lead WOU. Miller has gone for double-digit boards twice. She also is the Wolves' best shooter from the field at 48 percent, and has a team-leading 16 blocked shots.
 
FALCONS REPLAY
-- Jordan Wilson hit two free throws with seven seconds left last Thursday night, lifting Alaska Fairbanks past Seattle Pacific, 63-61. Jordan McPhee led the Falcons with 18 points.
-- Hannah Rodrigues scored 13 points – all from the free throw line, tying the school record for single-game foul shooting accuracy – but No. 2-ranked Alaska Anchorage overpowered the short-handed Falcons last Saturday, rolling to a 94-50 win.
 
SECRET WEAPON FROM DOWNTOWN
Until last Thursday night's game at Alaska Fairbanks, sophomore center Carly Rataushk had never even attempted a 3-pointer since joining the Falcons last season.

Maybe she should have.

 

Rataushk (Kirkland, Wash. / Lake Washington HS) knocked down 2 of 2 against the Nanooks, including one that banked in off the backboard with 15.5 seconds left to tie the game at 61-61 before UAF went on to win, 63-61.
 
Then on Saturday at Alaska Anchorage, she drilled another one. That makes her 3 for 3 behind the arc heading into this week's game.
 
In fact, the entire Alaska road trip was a good one for the 6-foot-2 Ratushk. She posted career highs of 14 points and seven rebounds in Fairbanks (her first time in double-digit scoring). At Anchorage, she had a career-high two assists.
 
A RECORD ON THE COURT …
 

With Courtney Hollander on the sidelines last week, senior forward Hannah Rodrigues has stepped into the starting lineup. Rodrigues loves to battle inside with anyone and everyone, whether going for a shot or going for a rebound.

That aggressive style earned Rodrigues (Eugene, Ore.) 14 trips to the free throw line last Saturday at Anchorage, and she made the most of it. Rodrigues hit 13 of those foul shots, a 92.9 percent success rate that tied the program record (with a minimum of 10 attempts).
 
The standard was set by Kerie Hughes on Jan. 5, 2002 against Western Washington.
 
… AND IN THE CLASSROOM
Seattle Pacific placed nine placers on the GNAC All-Academic team that was announced last week. It was the most the Falcons have ever placed on any conference squad recognizing success with the grades.
 
Previously, SPU had seven players on the 2005, 2007, 2008, and 2016 All-Academic teams.
 
Leading the way for the Falcons were three-time senior honorees Stacey Lukasiewicz and Hannah Rodrigues. Juniors Courtney Hollander, Lindsay Lee, Jordan McPhee, and Erica Pagano were on for the second time. Sophomores Jaylee Albert, Julia Haining, and Madison Wright were on for the first time.
 
MARKING A MILESTONE
In the making
100th assist           Rachel Shim (has 97)
100th steal            Hannah Rodrigues (has 93)
200th rebound      Erica Pagano (has 176)
500th rebound      Courtney Hollander (has 492)
 
Made last week
None
 
DOUBLE-DOUBLE DELIGHTS
The Falcons did not record any double-doubles last week. They have six for the season..
 
COURTNEY HOLLANDER (5 season / 14 career)
13 pts-14 reb vs. UC San Diego, Nov. 18
10 pts-11 reb at Concordia. Dec. 3
10 pts-11 reb vs. Central Washington, Dec. 29
17 pts-11 reb at Central Washington, Jan. 28
14 pts-10 reb at Saint Martin's, Jan. 31
 
JORDAN McPHEE (1 season / 2 career)
14 pts-10 reb at Western Oregon, Dec. 1
 
STACEY LUKASIEWICZ (0 season / 1 career)
 
NATIONALLY SPEAKING (TOP 50)
Among the 307 programs in D2, SPU is …
-- 11th in free throw shooting (.777)
-- 18th in total assists (438)
-- 18th in assists per game (16.8)    
-- 32nd in assist / turnover ratio (1.10)
-- 44th in scoring defense (59.0)
-- 48th in total steals (248)
 
Click on this link to see how the Falcons stack up nationally in all statistical categories. Click on this link to see how other GNAC teams and players rank.
 
AROUND THE WEST
Alaska Anchorage can wrap up the GNAC regular-season title by sweeping its games at Western Washington on Thursday and at Simon Fraser on Saturday. Or, even just a win in Bellingham will get the job done for the Seawolves (25-1, 18-0 GNAC), currently on a 21-game winning streak. Western (23-3, 17-1) and winner of 17 in a row, has at least the No. 2 seed (and a first-round bye) in hand for the GNAC Tournament. Simon Fraser (23-5, 14-4 GNAC) is locked in at No. 3. Then, it's the battle for Nos. 4, 5, and 6 between Seattle Pacific, Alaska Fairbanks, and Northwest Nazarene
 
UC San Diego has all but officially locked up the California Collegiate Athletic Association title. The Tritons (20-5, 16-3) have a 1 1/2 -game lead on second-place Cal State East Bay (17-8, 14-4). The only other CCAA team with single-digit losses for the season is Cal State San Bernardino (14-8, 11-7). The Coyotes host UCSD on Thursday.
 
Cal Baptist, now with 24 straight wins, needs just one more win or one more Point Loma Nazarene loss to secure the Pacific West Conference crown. Those two square off Saturday afternoon on CBU's home court in Riverside. The Lancers are 27-2, 18-0 in the conference; the Sea Lions are 23-3, 17-2, and have won nine straight. Hawaii Pacific (19-5, 16-3) can't catch Cal Baptist, but is still in line for a trip to NCAAs.
 
AROUND THE GNAC
Click on this link for the latest news, notes, results, and stats from around the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
 
UP NEXT
Assuming the Falcons win one of their two games this week, or Concordia loses one of its two, the next stop will be Saint Martin's University in Lacey next week for the GNAC Tournament. The first round is Thursday, March 2, with games at 12 noon and 2:15 p.m. The semifinals are Friday, March 3, at noon and 2:15, and the championship game is Saturday the 4th at 5:15 p.m.
 
The tournament champion will get the GNAC's automatic berth into the NCAA West Regional tournament.
 
Advance tickets, with discounts available, can be purchased online through the end of February by clicking on this link. They also will be available on site at Marcus Pavilion.



GNAC STANDINGS
                                                Conference          Overall
Alaska Anchorage                    18-0                    25-1
Western Washington                17-1                    23-3
Simon Fraser                             14-4                    23-5
Seattle Pacific                              9-9                    17-9
Alaska Fairbanks                        9-9                    13-12
Northwest Nazarene                  9-9                    11-13
Central Washington                    7-11                  12-14
Concordia                                     7-11                  10-16
Montana State Billings               5-13                    8-18
Western Oregon                          3-15                    7-18
Saint Martin's                               1-17                    5-21