THE SCHEDULE
Saturday, Dec. 18                Puget Sound at Seattle Pacific, 2:00 p.m.
                                                Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
                                                Live Webcast        Live stats
 
 
SEATTLE – Before they head home for the holidays, the Seattle Pacific Falcons have to wrap up one more thing:
 
Their women's basketball non-conference schedule.
 
SPU will do that wrapping up on Saturday afternoon when it plays host to nationally ranked Puget Sound in Brougham Pavilion. Tip-off is at 2:00 p.m.
 
The Falcons (4-7 overall) will be playing their 10^th non-conference game of the season. They are looking to get back into the win column after a pair of close losses last weekend in Northern California, to Stanislaus State and Cal State East Bay, both by identical 57-55 scores.
 
Puget Sound (9-1) is ranked No. 21 in this week's NCAA Division III poll, having won nine straight games.
 
After Saturday, Seattle Pacific's final 16 games will be against Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponents.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
Saturday's game will have a live Webcast and live stats. Greg Sexton will be on the play-by-play for the Webcast. The appropriate links can be found at the top of this story.
 
TICKET TALK
Fans are welcome to attend games in person at Brougham Pavilion.
 
In compliance with King County guidelines, spectators 12 years of age and older attending SPU athletic events will need to provide proof of full vaccination or present a negative COVID-19 test. Before purchasing or picking up tickets at venue Will Call windows, attendees will be required to show evidence of vaccination. Acceptable forms of proof include a CDC-issued Vaccination Record Card, a photo of the card, the Washington state myIRmobile.com app or a document from a health care provider.
 
Those who cannot provide proof of vaccination may instead present documentation of a negative FDA-approved COVID-19 test administered by a professional and dated within 72 hours of the event.
 
For additional details, please click on the SPU ATHLETICS ENTRY POLICY webpage. Mask wearing is mandatory at all times and spectators are encouraged to social distance when possible. Save the wait in line and obtain your SPU soccer tickets in advance by purchasing them online the SPU TICKETS webpage.
 




SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- The Falcons are 3-6 in non-conference games.
-- SPU's most recent game against a Northwest Conference school was the opener of last winter's abbreviated season. Pacific Lutheran came to Brougham Pavilion that night, and the Falcons won, 56-51.
-- Seattle Pacific is 96-44 all-time against current NWC members.
-- Puget Sound has been the most frequent of those opponents, as the Loggers and Falcons have met 46 times, with SPU winning 32 of those games.
-- The Falcons are allowing 59.9 points per game, one of three GNAC schools with a sub-60 average. The other two under 60 are Alaska Anchorage (52.3) and Western Washington (52.9).
-- Along those lines, Saturday's game looms as a battle between two defensive-minded teams. Puget Sound is No. 1 for fewest points allowed in the Northwest Conference at 57.9 per game.
-- Seattle Pacific has kept four of its 11 opponents below 60, and two (Metro State and Westminster College) have scored exactly 60. UPS has kept five opponents below 60, and one (Cal Lutheran) has scored exactly 60.
-- Opposing teams shoot about the same against both schools: .357 vs. the Falcons and .367 vs. the Loggers.
-- Although she missed last Saturday's game at Cal State East Bay with an illness, senior forward Natalie Hoff continues to rank among the GNAC's top 10 for rebounding (No. 6 at 7.2 per game) and free throw shooting (No. 4 at 87.5 percent, 28 of 32).
-- While head coach Mike Simonson has used four different starting lineups in the first 11 games, three players – all of them seniors – have been on the court for every opening tip-off: point guard Abril Rexach Roure, guard Kaprice Boston, and guard / forward Ashley Alter.
-- This will be Simonson's second game against Puget Sound and his fourth against a Northwest Conference school. The previous outing against the Loggers ended in a 76-63 Falcons victory on Nov. 2, 2019 in Seattle. That was the debut of Abril Rexach Roure in an SPU uniform, as she recorded 12 points and five assists in 31 minutes.
-- Along with last year's opener against Pacific Lutheran, Simonson's very first game in charge of the Falcons was an exhibition against NWC member George Fox on Nov. 3, 2018, in Brougham Pavilion. The Bruins hung on for a 75-74 victory.
 
SCOUTING THE PUGET SOUND LOGGERS: 9-1, 2-0 NWC (tie 1^st)
All-time series: SPU leads, 32-14. Current series streak: SPU won 10. Last time: SPU 76, UPS 63 (Nov. 2, 2019 at Seattle). Last UPS series win: UPS 77, SPU 67 (Feb. 6, 1993 at Seattle). Loggers on the Web.
Loggers in a nutshell: After losing its opening game to UC Santa Cruz, Puget Sound has rattled off nine straight victories and climbed into the NCAA Division III national coaches rankings on Dec. 7 at the No. 23 position. The Loggers moved up to No. 21 this week. Their closest calls during that stretch have been a pair of eight-pointers, the second of which was an 80-72 victory against D3 power George Fox on Dec. 4 in Tacoma. Sophomore 6-foot guard Sophie Nilsson is the only logger averaging in double figures, but she's way up there at 17.6 points per game. She opened the season with 27 points against Santa Cruz, and has had two more 20-pointers since then, thanks in part to 48.9 percent shooting from the field and 33.9 percent from 3-point range. Nilsson also averages 5.5 rebounds and has a team-high 14 blocked shots. Junior 5-9 guard Samantha Swartout averages 9.5 points and 5.3 rebounds. Leading the way on the boards is junior 5-9 guard Katie Minnean, who pulls down an average of 6.2 per game. She has come up with a noteworthy 37 steals in 10 games, and leads the team in assists at 2.8 per outing.
 
PLAYING THE TOUGH ONES TOUGH
Through their first nine non-conference games, the Falcons have tangled with three of the top four teams in the California Collegiate Athletic Association standings (Stanislaus State, Cal State East Bay, and Humboldt State), and with the leader of the Pacific West Conference (Azusa Pacific).
 
They didn't always get the results they wanted, but went toe-to-toe with all four, defeating Humboldt by two (54-52), taking Azusa to overtime (losing 67-61) and going down to the last few seconds with Stanislaus last Thursday and East Bay last Saturday (falling by identical 57-55 scores).
 
SPU kept all four opponents below 40 percent shooting from the field (and kept Humboldt below 30, at 28.8 percent), None of the three CCAA schools reached 60 points, and even Azusa managed just 57 in regulation time before tacking on 10 more in OT.
 
In addition, the Falcons had more rebounds in all four games and more assists in three of them.
 
SISTER ACT: CHAPTER 5
Throughout the 47-year history of the SPU program, some talented sisters have donned the maroon uniform.
 
 

The latest iteration of that is the Hoffs: senior forward Natalie, and freshman guard Maya, products of Southridge High in Beaverton, Oregon.
 
The first sister act was the Lindbergs from Montrose, Colorado. Tosca, a member of the Falcons Hall of Fame, played from 1990-93; Ali from 1992-93, and Erica from 1994-97. Tosca and Ali also played volleyball.
 
Then came the Konsmos from Auburn High School, 33 miles south of campus. Kristi played in 1993 and '94; Nancy was here from 1994-96.

Kristin and Jenny Poe hailed from Enumclaw, 47 miles southeast of SPU. Kristin played from 2000-04, followed by Jenny from 2004-06. Another Enumclaw pair followed them, as Beth and Jessie Christensen took the court for the Falcons from 2005-08.
 
AROUND THE WEST
Western Washington (8-0) and Alaska Anchorage (7-0) of the GNAC remain as the only undefeated teams in the entire West Region. Neither played last weekend, but both were back in non-conference action on Tuesday, as the Vikings beat Academy of Art in the first of three straight road games against Pacific West opponents, and UAA defeated Hawaii Pacific at the Oahu Christmas Classic in Honolulu.
 
Stanislaus State (9-1), Cal State East Bay (8-1), and Cal State San Marcos (6-2) are clearly the standouts in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. Stanislaus (4-0 CCAA) is half a game ahead of East Bay (3-0) and San Marcos (4-1). No one else in the conference is above .500 overall, and only two others (Chico State, San Francisco State) are at .500 (4-4).
 
Azusa Pacific remains the top team in the Pacific West Conference with a 7-1 overall record, 3-0 in league play. Dominican has won its first two Pac West games and is 5-4 overall; Biola has a 6-3 overall record and is one of three teams at 2-1 in the conference, joined by Hawaii Hilo and Academy of Art.

AROUND THE GNAC
Click on this link for the latest news, notes, results, and stats from around the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
 
UP NEXT
When the Falcons get back into action after Christmas, it will be on their toughest road trip of the year, visiting the Alaska schools. Up first will be No. 7-ranked Alaska Anchorage on Thursday, Dec. 30 at 6:15 p.m. Pacific time. Then it's a New Year's Day contest at Alaska Fairbanks, tipping off at 4:00 p.m. Pacific.
 
 
GNAC STANDINGS
                                                        GNAC      Overall
Western Washington         1-0     8-0
Alaska Anchorage           1-0     7-0
Northwest Nazarene         2-1     7-3
Montana State Billings     1-1     6-6
Seattle Pacific            1-1     4-7
Central Washington         1-2     5-4
Western Oregon             0-0     4-3
Alaska Fairbanks           0-0     1-4
Saint Martin's             0-1     6-2
Simon Fraser               0-0     3-6