THE SCHEDULE
Thursday, Feb. 23               Alaska Anchorage at Seattle Pacific, 7:30 p.m.
                                      Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
                                      Live Webcast        Live stats
 
Saturday, Feb. 25                Alaska Fairbanks at Seattle Pacific, 2:00 p.m.
                                      Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
                                      Live Webcast        Live stats
 
 
SEATTLE – Crunch time is officially here.
 
Still needing to clinch a spot in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball tournament, the Seattle Pacific Falcons have two chances to get it done on their own this week as they wrap up the regular season at home.
 
Up first is Alaska Anchorage on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. Then on Senior Day Saturday, Alaska Fairbanks comes to Brougham Pavilion at 2:00 p.m.
 
SPU (13-11, 8-8 GNAC) can secure a berth with a win in either game. Or, if Simon Fraser loses its regular-season finale on Thursday at Western Washington, that also will clinch a spot.
 
The Falcons are coming off a split of their final road trip, scoring a 59-48 victory at Simon Fraser last Thursday before falling 69-52 at Western Washington on Saturday.
 
Both of this week's games are doubleheaders. The SPU men also tangle with their Alaska counterparts: Anchorage on Thursday at 5:15 p.m., and Fairbanks on Saturday at 4:15 p.m.
 
FOLLOW IT LIVE
Saturday's game will have a free live Webcast on YouTube and free live stats.  Greg Sexton will call the play-by-play action for both doubleheaders. The appropriate links are available at the top of this story.
 

SALUTING THE SENIORS ON SATURDAY
Prior to the 2:00 p.m. tipoff in the regular-season finale against Alaska Fairbanks on Saturday, the Falcons will have a ceremony saluting the senior trio of Ashley Alter, Natalie Hoff and Chiara De Virgilio.
 
Guard / forward Alter (middle) and forward Hoff (top) are both in their fifth year. Both have been among the most productive Falcons in the history of the program.
 
Last Saturday at Western Washington, Alter scored the 1,000th point of her career. That makes her the 25th Falcon all-time to reach that milestone. Earlier this year, she grabbed her 300th rebound, and on Jan. 28, she played her 100th game as a Falcon.
 
Hoff scored her 900th point in the same game at WWU. She pulled down her 500th rebound earlier this season and comes into this week needing just 15 more boards to reach 600. She put her 100th career game into the book on Dec. 14 at Holy Names.
 
De Virgilio (bottom), a native of Argentina, joined SPU this season from Keiser University in Florida. She provided steady, mature floor leadership in a reserve role before a knee injury ended her season in late January.

RANK 'EM
The first official set of NCAA Division II West Region rankings were released on Wednesday, and Seattle Pacific is on the list at No. 10.
 
Cal State Dominguez Hills is in the No. 1 spot, with Western Washington at No. 2. Also from the GNAC, Montana State Billings is No. 4, and Central Washington is No. 5.
 
The top eight teams on the final list advance to the NCAA West Region Tournament. Three of those spots are for the GNAC, CCAA, and Pacific West tournament champions, The other five are at-large. Azusa Pacific is the only Pac West school on this week's list, coming in at No. 8.
 
One more set of rankings will be released next Wednesday prior to all three conference tournaments.
 
Rank      School                                                  Overall D2 record              In-Region record
   1   Cal St. Dominguez Hills          24-1               24-1
   2   Western Washington               21-3               19-3
   3   Cal State San Marcos             20-4               20-4
   4   Montana State Billings           20-5               17-4
   5   Central Washington               16-6               16-6
   6   Cal State Los Angeles            17-7               17-7
   7   Cal Poly Pomona                  15-9               15-9
   8   Azusa Pacific                    21-4               21-4
   9   Chico State                      17-8               17-8
 10    Seattle Pacific                  12-11              12-11

SO WHAT'S THE STORY THIS WEEK?
-- The Falcons opened their GNAC schedule in Alaska, defeating Fairbanks, 65-60, but falling to Anchorage, 62-54.
-- As always in GNAC play, the teams that open the season against each other don't meet again until the final weekend – a stretch of 2½ months.
-- SPU is 5-4 at home and looking to snap a two-game home losing streak.
-- Ashley Alter missed the December games in Alaska with a minor injury.
-- In fact, for the Dec. 1 game at Fairbanks, both teams were missing their leading scorers. The Nanooks were without guard Emma McKenney, who at the time was averaging 17.8 points per game.
-- The Seawolves were ranked No. 11 nationally when they hosted the Falcons on Dec. 3, but are not currently ranked.
-- Alaska Anchorage is the second-best team in the GNAC at forcing turnovers, as its opponents average 21.2 per game.
-- Last time, the Seawolves forced the Falcons into 28, converting those into 28 points. That was nearly half its total of 62.
-- Since then, the Falcons have, for the most part, done a much better job of protecting the ball. They had eight consecutive games of fewer than 15 turnovers before finishing with exactly 15 in last Saturday's 69-52 loss at Western Washington.
-- When Fairbanks comes in on Saturday, SPU will have a chance to close out its third season series sweep. Their previous two were against Saint Martin's and Simon Fraser.
-- In his five years at the helm, coach Mike Simonson's teams are perfect against the Nanooks (7-0), but winless against the Seawolves (0-7).
-- SPU's 10-game winning streak against Fairbanks is currently its longest against any GNAC school.
-- Despite giving up those 69 points Western Washington, Seattle Pacific is still allowing an average of just 58.8 per game, ranking No. 3 in the GNAC.
 

-- For the fourth time this season, Hunter Beirne hit a shot that beat the quarter buzzer, It happened last Saturday in Bellingham at the end of the first quarter to give SPU a 17-15 lead.
-- Last Thursday's 59-48 victory at Simon Fraser marked the fifth time this season the Falcons have kept an opponent below 50 points.
-- Ashley Alter now needs just two more makes from 3-point range to reach 100 for her career.
 
SCOUTING THE ALASKA ANCHORAGE SEAWOLVES: 16-9, 8-8 GNAC (tie 4th)
All-time series; SPU leads, 41-37.  Current series streak: UAA won 8.  Last time: UAA 62, SPU 54 (Dec. 3, 2022, at Anchorage).  Last SPU series win: SPU 74, UAA 65 (March 2, 2018, GNAC Tournament semifinals at Anchorage).  Seawolves on the Web.
Seawolves in a nutshell: This has been an challenging year for Anchorage, which, just like SPU, is still trying to secure a spot in the GNAC Tournament. The Seawolves won eight of their first nine games, but are 8-8 since then, coming to Seattle on a two-game winning streak by beating Saint Martin's and Western Oregon in Alaska last week. Vishe' Rabb, a junior 5-foot-9 guard who came to UAA this year after playing previously at Augustana (S.D.), averages 16.4 points per game to rank No. 5 on the conference scoring list. She also averages 6.1 rebounds. Senior 5-8 guard Jahnna Hajdukovich averages 11.3 points and is a threat from behind the arc with 53 makes and .368 shooting percentage. Anchorage plays a tough, pressing defense that forces a lot of turnovers (21.2 per game), with Rabb and sophomore 5-6 guard Jazzpher Evans having a big role in that with 45 steals apiece.
 
SCOUTING THE ALASKA FAIRBANKS NANOOKS: 4-19, 1-15 GNAC (10th)
All-time series: SPU leads, 67-16.  Current series streak: SPU won 10.  Last time: SPU 65, UAF 60 (Dec. 1, 2022, at Fairbanks).  Last UAF series win: UAF 63, SPU 61 (Feb, 16, 2017 at Fairbanks). Nanooks on the Web.
Nanooks in a nutshell: Alaska Fairbanks pulled off a 61-56 upset of rival Anchorage on Jan. 7, but now come into this week looking to halt an 11-game losing streak. Emma McKenney, a junior 5-foot-6 guard, leads the Nanooks in scoring at 13.2 points per game. She ranks 12^th in the GNAC for field goal accuracy at .450, and is deadly from downtown at .434 (No. 4 in the conference), with 53 makes. Redshirt sophomore 5-8 guard Sam Tolliver averages 11.5 points per game. Ellen Silva, a sophomore 6-1 forward, is a solid player around the hoop, with an average of 9.4 points on .535 shooting (No. 5 in the GNAC, one of just six players at .500 or better), and leads UAF in rebounds at 7.9 per contest (No. 4 on the conference list).
 
TOURNEY TALK: IT'S DOWN TO THIS
With the GNAC Tournament looming next week at Western Washington, three teams are in, three teams are out – and then there's the muddle middle.
 
Western Washington, Montana State Billings, and Central Washington all have secured their spots. Western (15-2) has the inside track for the No. 1 seed, but it's still up for grabs, as Montana State Billings (13-3) still has a shot at it. Central Washington (11-5) is currently No. 3 in the standings.
 
Western Oregon (5-11), Saint Martin's (5-11), and Alaska Fairbanks (1-15) are eliminated.
 
That leaves four teams going for the last three berths. SPU and Alaska Anchorage are both 8-8, Simon Fraser is 8-9, and Northwest Nazarene is 7-9. The Falcons can clinch a berth with a win in either of their final two games. They do have the season series sweep tiebreaker against Simon Fraser, but split with NNU and are aiming for a split against Anchorage.
 
A GRAND ACCOMPLISHMENT
Ashley Alter came into last week needing just 28 points to reach 1,000 for the career, the 25th Falcon to do so. She got 26 of those in last Thursday's 59-48 victory at Simon Fraser, so needed just two on Saturday at Western Washington.
 
 

It couldn't have happened any sweeter than it did between two Falcons who started their college careers together and will end them together within the next few weeks.
 
Alter, the fifth-year guard / forward, was under the hoop on the left side, and fellow fifth-year forward Natalie Hoff had the ball toward the left side of the free throw line. Hoff saw her, put the pass right in Alter's hands, and Alter went up for the reverse lay-in with 8:06 left in the first quarter.
 
"I didn't think about that. That's even more special because we've been on the team for five years, and she knew right away, and she celebrated it," Alter said. "That play couldn't have couldn't have gone any better."
 
HEAD OF THE CLASS
Led by four-time selection Natalie Hoff, Seattle Pacific placed eight players on the GNAC All-Academic team that was announced on Feb. 15.
 
 

Hoff was one of four players from around the conference who earned a fourth All-Academic honor, an opportunity made possible by the extra year of eligibility granted by the NCAA to student-athletes who lost a season because of pandemic-related shutdowns.
 
Joining Hoff were second-time selections Hunter Beirne, Anna Eddy, and Hailey Marlow.
 
Picking up their first All-Academic awards were Schuyler Berry, Jelena Carlisle, Maya Hoff, and Lolo Weatherspoon.
 
On Tuesday, Hoff was named to the College Sports Communicators (formerly CoSIDA) Academic All-District team for the first time.
 
NATIONALLY SPEAKING
Some highlights for the Falcons in the NCAA Division II national rankings heading into this week (among the 294 total D2 women's basketball programs):
 
-- 29th in rebound margin, +5.8 (Grand Valley State +12.1)
-- 46th in scoring defense, 58.8 (Assumption College 50.4)
-- 46th in blocks per game, 3.6 (Kutztown State 6.3).
-- 73rd in fewest fouls committed, 15.5 (Academy of Art 10.9)

Click on this link for a complete look at how the Falcons stack up within NCAA Division II.
 
AROUND THE WEST
The GNAC wraps up its regular season this week, and all nine games on the schedule – five on Thursday and four on Saturday – will have some kind of implications for the conference tournament. Western Washington can clinch the No. 1 seed with a homecourt victory against Simon Fraser on Thursday. Montana State Billings can secure at least the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye with a victory in either of its home games against the Alaska schools.
 
All six postseason qualifiers are set in the California Collegiate Athletic Association, although the final seeding for the Nos. 3 through 6 positions are still up for grabs. Cal State Dominguez Hills (25-1, 19-1 CCAA) and Cal State San Marcos (20-4, 17-3) are set at Nos. 1 and 2 heading into the regular-season finales, as Dominguez Hills wrapped up the top spot last week with a wire-to-wire 68-58 victory against San Marcos. Cal State Los Angeles (17-8, 14-6) and Chico State (18-8, 14-6) are tied for No. 3, while Sonoma State (15-11, 12-6) and Cal Poly Pomona (15-9, 12-6) are tied for No. 5.
 
Likewise, the six tournament qualifiers for the Pacific West Conference are in place, although seeding is not yet finalized except for the No. 1 spot, which belongs to Azusa Pacific (22-4, 17-2 Pac West). Dominican (16-10, 14-5) has moved into second place ahead of Concordia Irvine (16-8, 13-5), as the Golden Eagles, who were in second almost the entire season, have dropped four in a row. The other tourney-bound teams are Hawaii Pacific, Biola, and Point Loma Nazarene.
 
AROUND THE GNAC
Click on this link to see how GNAC teams and players stack up within NCAA Division II.
 
UP NEXT
The GNAC Tournament is set for next Thursday through Saturday, March 2-4, at Western Washington University's Carver Gymnasium in Bellingham. First-round games on Thursday will pair the No. 3 seed against No. 6, and No. 4 against No. 5. Time slots are 5:15 and 7:30 p.m., but which game goes into which slot won't be determined until all of the seedings are set. Friday semifinals are set for 5:15 and 7:30, and the championship game on Saturday is at 7:30. The tournament winner gets the GNAC's automatic berth into the NCAA West Regionals.
 
The men's tournament also will be at Western, with noon and 2:15 p.m. games on Thursday and Friday, and the final on Saturday at 5:00. Seattle Pacific has qualified.
 
 
GNAC STANDINGS
                                                       GNAC             Overall
Western Washington        15-2       21-3
Montana State Billings    13-3       22-5
Central Washington        11-5       19-6
Alaska Anchorage           8-8       16-9
Seattle Pacific            8-8       13-11
Simon Fraser               8-9       10-11
Northwest Nazarene         7-9       11-13
Western Oregon             5-11      11-13
Saint Martin's             5-11       9-15
Alaska Fairbanks           1-15       4-19