Box score (PDF)

ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Sooner or later, a shot had to go in for Seattle Pacific.
 
It was later – but ultimately, too late.
 
Going back and forth against preseason favorite Central Washington on Thursday night, the Falcons went without a point for 11 minutes spanning the second and third quarters. The Wildcats took advantge, putting together a 15-0 run on the way to a 65-46 victory in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball opener.
 
SPU (0-7. 0-1 GNAC) was not able to get anyone into double-digit scoring, as senior guard Hailee Bennett led the way with eight points.
 
"They did a good job guarding our offense," head coach Mike Simonson said. "But ultimately, we got a lot of open shots that I think our players normally make. We made 2 out of 23 from 3-point range, and that's so uncharacteristic of our team. We executed our game plan very well. We just didn't execute the shots we should make."

The game in Nicholson Pavilion was tied at 26-26 after sophomore Natalie Hoff made a step-around move for an easy lay-in shot with 4:38 left in the second quarter.
 
But Seattle Pacific didn't score again until 3:37 remained in the third when freshman Kayla Brundidge hit one of her two free throws. Bennett sank a free throw at 3:15. A stretch of 12 straight misses from the field ended at the 2:49 mark when redshirt freshman Baylee Brennan drained a 3-pointer.
 
 

"I definitely thought we were getting the shots we wanted," Simonson said. "It wasn't until the second part of the third quarter when we got going offensively. Once we did, I was pretty pleased with what we were executing. We just didn't get it done."
 
For the night, SPU hit 27 percent (17 of 63), while Central hit at a 51 percent clip (25 of 49).
 
The Falcons buried four of their first five shots and jumped to an 8-2 lead. But they hit a frosty streak, missing 11 in a row in a span of nearly six minutes, and Central went on as 13-2 run to take a 15-10 lead.
 
CWU (4-3, 1-0 GNAC) put together a 7-0 run spanning the first and second quarters, turning a 15-15 tie into a 22-15 lead. SPU answered with an 11-4 spurt, started by a Grace Sterk 3-pointer and capped by Hoff's lay-in, climbing into a 26-26 tie. Central Washington put the last five points of the half on the board for a 31-26 lead at the break.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
-- While the offense had its struggles, the defense kept Central Washington to its second-lowest point total of the season. The Falcons limited Wildcats senior guard Alexis Pana to a season-low 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting. Pana is the GNAC's leading scorer at 17.2 points per game and was coming off a 28-point outing last Saturday at Metro State.
 
"I thought we did a great job guarding Pana, who in my estimation is a candidate for Player of the Year," Simonson said. (Pana already has been voted as the GNAC's Preseason Player of the Year.) "To hold her to 11 shows how well we did defensively. It was a team effort – we had different people guarding her at different times."

-- The Falcons are now 16-3 all-time in GNAC openers, including 8-3 on the road.
-- Natalie Hoff, playing 20 minutes in a reserve role, led the way with eight rebounds to go along with six points. Of those, five came at the offensive end.`
 
UP NEXT
SPU wind up the first weekend of GNAC play on Saturday at Northwest Nazarene. Tip-off in Nampa is at 4:15 p.m. Pacific time. The Nighthawks beat Saint Martin's in their conference opener on Thursday, 82-71.
 

NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Thursday, Dec. 5, 2019
Nicholson Pavilion / Ellensburg, Wash.
 
Central Washington 65, Seattle Pacific 46
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (0-7, 0-1 GNAC)
Burgess 3-6 0-0 6, Sterk 2-6 2-2 7, Bennett 2-5 4-5 8, Hingston 1-8 0-0 2, Alter 2-11 0-0 4, Rexach Roure 1-6 0-0 2, Berg 1-3 1-1 3, Hoff 2-7 2-4 6, Brennan 2-6 0-0 5, Brundidge 1-5 1-4 3. Totals 17-63 10-16 46.
 
CENTRAL WASHINGTON (4-3, 1-0 GNAC)
Flores 5-9 2-2 12., Shaw 2-6 1-2 5, Bowman 5-10 1-2 11, Phiakhamngon 2-5 0-0 5, Pana 4-8 2-2 11, Richardson 5-9 4-5 15, Maeda 0-0 0-0 0, Troy 1-1 1-1 3, Brown 0-0 1-2 1, Lancaster 0-0 0-0 0, Stephens 0-0 0-2 0, Williams 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 25-49 12-18 65.
 
Seattle Pacific                   15          11            8          12          -- 46
Central Washington          17          14          16          18          -- 65
 
3-point goals – SPU 2-23 (Burgess 0-2, Sterk 1-3, Bennett 0-2, Hingston 0-5, Alter 0-4, Rexach Roure 0-1, Berg 0-2, Hoff 0-1, Brennan 1-3), CWU 3-9 (Flores 0-2, Shaw 0-2, Bowman 0-1, Phiakhamngon 1-2, Pana 1-1, Richardson 1-1). Fouled out – SPU: Burgess. Rebounds – SPU 35 (Hoff  8), CWU 42 (Richardson 10). Assists – SPU 14 (Alter 3), CWU 14 (Pana 5). Turnovers – SPU 14, CWU 19. Total fouls – SPU 20, CWU 18. Technical fouls – None. Attendance – 512.
 
 
Next game
Seattle Pacific at Northwest Nazarene
Saturday, 4:15 p.m. PST
Johnson Sports Center / Nampa, Idaho