THE SCHEDULE
Monday, Dec. 12                  Seattle Pacific at Dominican, 5:30 p.m.
                                      Conlan Center / San Rafael, Calif.
                                      Live Webcast (pay-per-view)             Live stats
 
Wednesday, Dec. 14           Seattle Pacific at Holy Names, 1:00 p.m.
                                     Tobin Gymnasium / Oakland, Calif.
                                     Live Webcast (pay-per-view)             Live stats
 
Saturday, Dec. 17                Stanislaus State at Seattle Pacific, 2:00 p.m.
                                      Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
                                      Live Webcast       Live stats

 
SEATTLE – California, here they come.
 
The Seattle Pacific Falcons, who've normally been to the Golden State by this juncture of their non-conference women's basketball schedule, take their first and only Cali trip this week when they visit Dominican and Holy Names.
 
SPU and the Penguins tip off on Monday at 5:30 p.m. in San Rafael. Then on Wednesday in Oakland, it's the Falcons and Hawks squaring off at 1:00 p.m.
 
The unusual three-game week concludes at home on Saturday when Stanislaus State comes to Brougham Pavilion for a 2:00 p.m. contest. That will conclude non-conference play.
 
Seattle Pacific is coming off a light week, it's only contest being last Thursday's 65-44 rout of Lincoln-California in Brougham.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
All three of this week's games will have live Webcasts and live stats. The Dominican and Holy Names contests require a pay-per-view subscription. The home game against Stanislaus is a free live Webcast, with Greg Sexton calling the action. All three games will have free live stats. The appropriate links can be found at the top of this story.
 
IT'S HOLIDAY BREAK TIME
After Saturday's game against Stanislaus State, the Falcons will join all other NCAA Division II teams in taking a mandatory seven-day break. This year's time off runs from Tuesday, Dec. 20 through Monday, Dec. 26.
 
The dates vary from year to year, depending on how the calendar falls, but it is always seven consecutive days, and always includes Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and Dec. 26. (Last year's dates were Dec. 21-27.) The 2023 dates also are Dec. 20-26;
 
This required week-long break has been in place for several years and is unique to D2. During that time, student-athletes can not interact with coaches or athletic training staff and can not use any school facilities.

 
 SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- Heading into Dominican, the Falcons are looking to forge their second two-game winning streak of the season.
-- The first one was a victory against then-No. 21 Azusa Pacific on Nov. 19 in Bellingham, followed by a 'W' at Regis in Denver on Nov. 25.
-- The last time SPU had a winning streak longer than two was a stretch of three in a row from last Dec. 18 through this past Jan. 6.
-- The game against Azusa Pacific was Seattle Pacific's only one against a Pacific West Conference school this season.
-- The Falcons are 3-3 out of town, having split each of their three road trips. That record includes 2-1 in true road games (wins at Regis and Alaska Fairbanks, a loss to Alaska Anchorage) and 1-2 on neutral courts (a win against Azusa, losses to Cal State San Marcos and Colorado School of Mines).
-- Prior to becoming one of the founding members of the Great Northwest Athletic Conference in time for the 2001-02 academic year, Seattle Pacific was a Pacific West member from 1992-93 through 2000-01.
-- While this is the first meeting against Dominican and just the third against Holy Names (first since 2018), most of the current Falcons are very familiar with Stanislaus State. The two teams met last Dec. 9 in Turlock, California, and the Warriors hung on for a 57-55 victory.
-- In that one, Falcons center Schuyler Berry, then a freshman, had her first collegiate double-digit scoring game, tallying 11 points.
-- The Warriors had a pair of buzzer-beaters: a scoop shot off the backboard to end the second quarter, snapping a 23-23- tie, and a free throw to conclude the third, providing a 43-41 edge heading into the final 10 minutes.
-- The 44 points allowed to Lincoln last week was SPU's first sub-50 game of the season. The most recent one prior to that was in last year's GNAC Tournament play-in round when the Falcons flattened Alaska Fairbanks, 78-48.
 

-- Of the four new Falcons who still hadn't seen any regular-season minutes, three of them got onto the court against Lincoln last week. Emilia Bishop played 11 minutes, 33 seconds and contributed four points, five rebounds, and two blocked shots. Makenna Jacklin played 9:06 with three points, one steal, and one blocked shot. Kylie Yung was in for 3:29 and had one rebound.
-- SPU players are looking to get back into their shooting groove. After their best percentage of the season (.465) in a 62-54 loss at No. 11-ranked Alaska Anchorage on Dec. 3, the Falcons had their worst night of the season (.354) against Lincoln.
-- One player who was finding the basket vs. the Oaklanders was Berry. She hit 6 of 10 and is now at .500 for the season (26 of 52), tying her for No. 9 among GNAC players to start this week.
-- Redshirt sophomore point guard Hunter Beirne comes into the week with a pair of top-10 GNAC rankings: a tie for No. 7 in assists at 3.3 per game, and No. 9 in 3-point shooting at .389 (7 of 18).
-- Speaking of 3-pointers, sophomore guard Anna Eddy is tied for No. 4 in the conference for average makes per game at 2.6.
 
SCOUTING THE DOMINICAN PENGUINS: 3-6, 1-2 Pac West (tie 6th)
All-time series: First meeting. Penguins on the Web.
Penguins in a nutshell: Dominican snapped a four-game losing streak on Saturday with a 66-56 homecourt decision against Fresno Pacific, its first 'W' of the year in conference play. That was the fewest points allowed by the Penguins this season. Brittney Cedeno a redshirt senior 5-foot-9 point guard, leads the way on offense with an average of 12.3 points per game, and is the only Dominican player averaging in double figures. But Cedeno does more than score. She also is tops on the boards, collecting 7.9 per night, has handed out a team-high 23 assists and come up with 41 steals, an average of 4.6 per game. Sophomore 5-3 point guard Alex Salise is close to double-digit scoring at 9.8 points per game and is Dominican's biggest threat from downtown with 11 makes. Junior 6-foot forward Olga Faasolo averages 9.2 points and 5.1 rebounds.
 
SCOUTING THE HOLY NAMES HAWKS: 1-8, 0-2 Pac West (9th)
All-time series: SPU leads, 3-0.  Current series streak: SPU won 3.  Last time: SPU 84, HNU 73 (Nov. 20, 2018 at Seattle). Hawks on the Web.
Hawks in a nutshell: Holy Names comes into the week looking to halt a six-game skid and hosts Chaminade on Monday night prior to Wednesday's contest against SPU. The only win for the Hawks was 67-56 against Cal State Maritime Academy on Nov. 16. Among the players who have seen regular action, Sophomore 5-foot-4 guard Dylan Benitez scores 9.8 points per game and is tied for the team lead in steals with 18. Jayden Benitez, a senior 5 -3 guard, scores at a 9.5 clip and is the leading playmaker for the Hawks with 24 assists. Senior 5-6 guard Samantha Zambrano averages 9.0 points per game and is the team's top 3-point shooter with 15 makes. Sophomore 5-5 guard Jazmine Soto averages 9.1 points and 3.9 rebounds. Soto also has 18 steals.
 
SCOUTING THE STANISLAUS STATE WARRIORS: 3-8, 0-6 CCAA (tie 11th)
All-time series: Tied, 1-1. Current series streak: CSSU won 1. Last time: CSSU 57, SPU 55 (Dec. 9, 2021 at Turlock, Calif.). Last SPU series win: SPU 89, CSSU 60 (Nov. 29, 2003 at Nampa, Idaho). Warriors on the Web.
Warriors in a nutshell: Stanislaus has been a streaky team. It started the season with a pair of losses to GNAC opponents (63-55 to Northwest Nazarene and 86-62 to Central Washington), won three straight against Pacific West teams, but now has lost five in a row to start CCAA play. The only Warriors player averaging in double figures scoring is freshman 5-foot-7 guard Makayla Rose at 14.3 points per game. She also is a tough defensive player, coming up with a team-high 29 steals. Liliana Marques, a junior 5-9 guard, averages 9.5 points and 4.9 rebounds. Sophomore 5-11 forward Jola Armstrong is close behind at 9.1 points and is the top Stanislaus player on the boards at 5.0 per game. Da'Miyah Lewis, a sophomore 5-8 guard, contributes 8.8 points per contest and is the top shooter among the regular at .429.
 
ANOTHER FAREWELL GAME
Wednesday's game will be just the third one between SPU and Holy Names. But it also will be the last. The Oakland school announced on Nov. 21 that this will be final year of its athletics program.
 
This marks the third time in the past decade that the Falcons have gone against an opponent that now is no longer here. In 2012, they played against Notre Dame de Namur. That school discontinued athletics at the end of the 2019-20 academic year.
 
That same year, Concordia-Portland not only shut down athletics, it shut down the entire school. Now, Holy Names is halting participation in intercollegiate sports.
 
A WINDEX SHINE – AND THEN SOME
The Falcons have been solid on the boards so far, out-rebounding their opponent in six of the seven games.
 
But last Thursday's performance against Lincoln of California stood above all the others. SPU more than doubled the Oaklanders, 53-26. Even that wasn't the most noteworthy part. Of those 53 boards, 29 came at the offensive end, compared to 24 at the defensive end.
 
"I don't know if I've ever seen that in my career," head coach Mike Simonson said. "I'm really happy with that and not somebody doing it to us."
 
Seattle Pacific collected 22 rebounds (13 offensive) in the first quarter alone.
 
 

Leading the way was sophomore guard Maya Hoff. She not only had her career high by halftime, she was in double digits with 10, and went on to finish the game with 12 (eight offensive). Her previous career high was six (twice).
 
"Maya was incredible on the glass," Simonson said. "She could be one of the best rebounders in our conference. … When you're 6-2 and have great hand-eye coordination like her, you can really get your hand on a lot of basketballs. For her size, her hand-eye coordination and skill is elite. We always try to harness that with her, and she did a great job realizing her skillset tonight."
 
SIMO SAYS …
(On the play of newcomer Emilia Bishop vs. Lincoln)
"Emi Bishop is going to be a really good player at SPU. She's somebody we feel is going to blossom in our system over time. She redshirted as a freshman (at Northern Colorado last year) and didn't get a lot of development. So coming here with our program, she has really started to develop."
 
 

(On everyone getting to play against Lincoln)
"That was a huge thing going into the game. We wanted to make sure everyone got an opportunity, and we wanted to get better. For the most part, we got better. That's the first time we held a team under 55 points, and that's kind of a gold standard for us. To hold a team in the 40s is really good.
 
(On the significance of this week's games for postseason)
"This is probably the biggest week of our season. These in-region games are so important when you have postseason aspirations like we do."
 
AROUND THE WEST
Conference play in the GNAC is done until after Christmas, but a smattering of non-conference games are still on the schedule. Montana State Billings, keeps winning, and now is 10-1 overall after a 29-point victory against Rocky Mountain (77-48) and a 48-pointer against Montana State Northern. There are still three other GNAC teams with just one loss overall: Central Washington (8-1), Alaska Anchorage (8-1) and Western Washington (5-1).
 
Cal State Dominguez Hills is one of two unbeatens in the California Collegiate Athletic Association at 4-0 (Cal State San Marcos also is 4-0.) Dominguez Hills also remains the only overall undefeated team in the entire West Region with an 8-0 record. The Toros host a pair of GNAC teams this week to conclude non-conference play, with Western Oregon in on Friday and No. 17 Alaska Anchorage visiting next Sunday, Dec. 18.
 
Azusa Pacific is alone atop the Pacific West Conference at 4-0, and at 9-2 overall is clearly the top team in the conference. Hawaii Pacific is 3-0 in Pac West Play, but just 3-3 overall. The only other .500-plus team overall is Concordia Irvine at 6-4. The conference schedule continues through next Monday, with a smattering of non-conference games thrown in, including HPU's home contest on Friday against Western Washington.
 
UP NEXT
When they return from the holiday break, the Falcons will dive fully into GNAC play for the rest of the regular season. Up first is Northwest Nazarene on Thursday, Dec. 29, at  7:30 p.m. as the second half of a doubleheader. That twin bill begins at 4:15 p.m. with the Falcon men facing NNU. Then on New Year's Eve Saturday, it's another doubleheader, this one against Central Washington. The women tip off at 2:00 p.m., followed by the men at 4:15.
 
 
GNAC STANDINGS
                                                     GNAC                  Overall
Montana State Billings    2-0          10-1
Central Washington        2-0           8-1
Northwest Nazarene        2-0           6-2
Western Washington        1-0           5-1
Alaska Anchorage          1-1           8-1
Seattle Pacific           1-1           4-3
Simon Fraser              0-1           2-3
Western Oregon            0-2           5-2
Saint Martin's            0-2           4-6
Alaska Fairbanks          0-2           1-7