NAMPA, Idaho – They had the time and the opportunities.
 
The Seattle Pacific Falcons just couldn't quite all the way back on Thursday night.
 
Olivia Mayer had 15 points and 13 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the year, but SPU, after trimming a 13-point halftime deficit all the way down to two, fell short on Thursday evening at Northwest Nazarene, 50-47.
 
That dinged the Falcons (5-8, 2-1) with their first Great Northwest Athletic Conference loss as play resumed following the holiday break.
 
 

"We had a lot of coulda-woulda-shoulda's that probably would have helped decide the game and give us a win," head coach Mike Simonson said. "But I think we know the difference in the game was the second quarter for us – we didn't have a good quarter. Our defense lapsed and offensively, we were very timid.
 
:"But I'm really proud of our mindset in the second half," Simonson added. "We really flipped the switch. We were aggressive, we looked to score, we got stops, and ultimately on the road, a one-possession game, I'm really proud of that effort. … It's hard to win on the road, but it's probably the best we've performed on the road outside of Stanislaus State (on Dec.14)."
 
Freshman guard Layne Kearns added eight points and five rebounds for SPU, and junior center Schuyler Berry pulled down seven boards.
 
A cold-shooting first half (21.8 percent, 7 of 32) left the Falcons down 29-16 at the break. They hit just 7 of 32 through the first 20 minutes, including just 3 of 14 in the second quarter and were kept off the scoreboard for the final 4:47 before the intermission.

"We made some tweaks on offense in the hope it would get us some different types of looks than we were getting previously," Simonson said. "And in part, some of those tweaks made us a little more timid than I would have liked. But I have to give NNU credit. They do a good job of pressing you a little bit and denying you and kind of making you unsure."
 
The Falcons then came out and scored more points in the third quarter (19) than they did through the entire opening half, thanks in large part to 8-of-15 shooting in their own end and limiting Northwest Nazarene to 4 of 16. That helped narrow the margin to 40-35 heading into the final quarter.
 
 

A 3-pointer by Kearns from way out in the left corner cut it to 47-45 with plenty of time – 5:53 – still on the clock. But Seattle Pacific went scoreless for the next 5 minutes, 11 seconds, missing four shots and turning it over three times.
 
Still, Northwest Nazarene (5-5, 2-1 GNAC) managed just one basket of its during that stretch for a 50-45 edge before Hunter Beirne finally ended the drought with a driving lay-in at the 42.3-second mark.
 
An NNU 3-second violation with 11.4 seconds left gave the ball back to SPU. Coming out of a timeout, it came into Beirne on the left side, and she looked everywhere for an open teammate or an open shot of her own. With the clock running out, she launched a desperation 3-pointer from the left of the lane, but it fell short.
 
"We were trying to draw up a situation to get a drive and hopefully a kick out for a 3," Simonson said. "Credit NNU – they did a good job of blowing up the play and we didn't get a look at all."

 

BACK IN ACTION
Falcon guards Hunter Beirne and Hailey Marlow both returned to the court on Thursday after missing most of December with minor injuries. Redshirt junior Beirne started and played 31 minutes, logging seven points, three rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Marlow, a senior, came off the bench and played 20 minutes with three points, one rebound, and one steal.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
-- SPU hit just 31 percent for the game, 19 of 61. That was two more field goals than the Nighthawks had, as they drained 17 of 50 for 34 percent.
-- But Northwest Nazarene had two more 3-pointers and five more points at the free throw line.
-- Olivia Mayer's 15 points brought her to 696 for her career.
-- Thursday was the fourth time this season the Falcons have kept an opponent to 50 points or fewer. It dropped their season average to 59.8 points allowed, one of four teams in the GNAC below 60.
-- Seattle Pacific had just 15 turnovers against NNU, a team that forces 19-plus per game.
-- The Nighthawks turned it over 22 times, and 13 of those were on steals by the Falcons. That was their second straight game and fourth this season with double-digit steals. Junior wing Lolo Weatherspoon had a career-high four.
 
UP NEXT
The Falcons travel to Ellensburg on Saturday to take on Central Washington. Tip-off in Nicholson Arena is at 4:00 p.m. and is the first game of a doubleheader. The Wildcats had their eight-game winning streak snapped on Thursday in a showdown against GNAC co-leader Montana State Billings, as the Yellowjackets pulled out an 82-73 victory.
 
The second half of the twin bill will have the SPU men taking on Central at 6:15 p.m.


NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Thursday, Jan. 4, 2024
Johnson Sports Center / Nampa, Idaho
 
Northwest Nazarene 50, Seattle Pacific 47
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (5-8, 2-1 GNAC))
Weatherspoon 2-11 0-0 5, Ohta 0-3 0-0 0, Beirne 3-13 0-0 7, Mayer 7-13 1-2 15, Berry 1-5 3-6 5, Marlow 1-4 0-0 3, Bishop 1-1 0-0 2, Kearns 3-9 1-1 8, Carlisle 0-0 0-0 0, Leasure 1-2 0-0 2.  Totals 19-61 5-9 47.
 
NORTHWEST NAZARENE (5-5, 2-1 GNAC)
James 3-9 3-5 10, E. Clark 2-5 0-2 5, Gebers 3-6 3-3 11, Kendall Clark 3-8 3-4 9, Bruegman 0-8 0-2 0, Davis 2-6 0-0 5, Knishka 0-2 0-0 0, Waid 3-4 1-1 7, Kate Clark 1-2 0-0 3.  Totals 17-50 10-17 50.
 
Seattle Pacific                     10             6           19           12           -- 47
Northwest Nazarene            8           21            11           10           -- 50
 
3-point goals – SPU 4-20 (Weatherspoon 1-2, Ohta 0-3, Beirne 1-5, Mayer 0-1, Marlow 1-3, Kearns 1-5, Leasure 0-1), NNU 6-17 (James 1-5, E. Clark 1-1, Gebers 2-4, Bruegman 0-2, Davis 1-1, Knishka 0-2, Kate Clark 1-2.  Fouled out – None.  Rebounds – SPU 38 (Mayer 13), NNU 40 (Bruegman 10).  Assists – SPU 9 (Weatherspoon 3, Beirne 3), NNU 9 (Kendall Clark 4).  Turnovers (points allowed) – SPU 15 (15), NNU 22 (16),  Total fouls – SPU 14, NNU 14.  Technical fouls – None.  Attendance – 688.
 
 
Next game
Seattle Pacific at Central Washington
Saturday, 4:00 p.m.
Nicholson Arena / Ellensburg, Wash.
 

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