LANGLEY, B.C. – The Seattle Pacific Falcons had the defense, the rebounding, and the ball handling.
 
The only thing they didn't have on Friday morning was the shooting touch.
 
Layne Kearns scored 11 points, and Julia Lavigne made her college debut with seven rebounds in just eight minutes, but the Falcons were too frosty from the field in a 65-49 loss to national No. 4-ranked Tampa in the season-opening women's basketball game at the D2CCA Canadian Tip-Off Classic, 65-49.
 
Sophomore guard Kearns was the only player in double figures for Seattle Pacific (0-1). Senior center Schuyler Berry added eight points and six rebounds.
 
SPU hit just 29.7 percent for the day (19 of 64), and that was boosted in part by a solid 50 percent fourth quarter (7 of 14).
 
 

"Our shot percentage was lower than we would have liked, and I told the team that if we had shot at a higher percentage, it would have been a different ball game," Karen Byers said after her official debut as interim head coach of the Falcons. "Our defense was great – we're still kind of working into that new system, but we executed well and I felt like this was a great step forward."
 
An 8-0 run early in the second quarter brought SPU from down by nine at 18-9 to down by just one at 18-17. That surge included a 3-pointer by fifth-year point guard Hunter Beirne and one by Kearns.
 
Tampa answered with a 16-4 run to push its lead back into double digits at 34-21 and took a 34-23 lead into halftime.
 
The margin was still 11 and within reach at 38-27 early in the third quarter. From there, the Falcons defense forced Tampa into missing its next nine shots. But SPU missed its next 10 and was kept off the board for 6 minutes, 31 seconds before Emilia Bishop drained a pair of free throws inside the final minute of the quarter.
 
"It wasn't going in today," Byers said. "We just didn't have the great knockdown shot."
 
Lavigne's seven rebounds were part of SPU's total of 39.
 
The Falcons committed seven turnovers. Last year, it took them until their 26th game to have just single-digit turnovers (5).
 
BY THE NUMBERS
-- The six newest Falcons all got playing time. Along with redshirt freshman Julia Lavigne's big rebounding effort, junior transfer Madison Rubino had three points, two rebounds, two blocks and one steal in 10 minutes. Redshirt freshman Grace Turley had two points in 11 minutes. Grad transfer Peyton Bergevin and true freshmen Grace Mertes and Phoenix Sharp all played, but did not score.
-- Tampa shot 40.7 percent for the day (24 of 59). That included 69.2 percent in the second quarter (9 of 13) and 53.3 percent in the fourth (8 of 15).
-- This was SPU's 50th season-opening game. Its record is now 36-14 in those games, dating back to the first official one in 1975.
-- Senior wing Lolo Weatherspoon had two rebounds, putting her at 99 for her career. Also still on the brink of a career century-mark stat is sophomore Grace Leasure with 98 points.
-- Schuyler Berry's eight points put her at 596 for her career.
 
UP NEXT
The Falcons tangle with preseason No. 11 Gannon of Erie, Pennsylvania on Saturday at 10:30 a.m.
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
D2CCA Canadian Tip-Off Classic
Friday, Nov. 1, 2024
Langley Events Center / Langley, B.C.
 
(No.4) Tampa 65, Seattle Pacific 49
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (0-1)
Kearns 4-12 2-2 11, Berry 3-10 2-3 8, Weatherspoon 3-7 0-0 6,Beirne 2-7 0-0 5, Leasure 0-2 0-0 0, Ohta 2-5 0-0 6, Bishop 2-7 2-2 6, Rubino 1-5 0-0 3, Turley 1-4 0-0 2, Lavigne1-1 0-2 2, Mertes 0-3 0-0 0, Bergevin 0-0 0-0 0, Sharp 0-1 0-0 0.  Totals 19-64 6-9 49.
 
TAMPA (1-0)
Ramsey 5-14 3-6 15, Rodriguez 5-12 2-2 14, Davis 4-13 2-2 13, Piller 5-10 2-4 12, McDonald 4-8 0-0 9, Palmieri 1-1 0-0 2, Jende 0-0 0-0 0, Butler 0-1 0-0 0, Patterson 0-0 0-0 0.  Totals 24-59 9-14 65.
 
Seattle Pacific       7           16             8           18           -- 49
Tampa Bay           12           22           11            20           -- 65
 
3-point goals – SPU 5-24 (Kearns 1-4, Weatherspoon 0-1, Beirne 1-4, Leasure 0-2, Ohta 2-3, Bishop 0-1,Rubino 1-3, Turley 0-2, Mertes 0-3 Sharp 0-1) Tampa 8-29 (Ramsey 2-10, Rodriguez 2-7, Davis 3-11, McDonald 1-1).  Fouled out – None.  Rebounds – SPU 39 (Lavigne 7), Tampa 47 (Piller 11). Assists – SPU 7 (7 players with 1), Tampa 17 (Ramsey 6).  Turnovers (points allowed) – SPU 7 (9), Tampa 9 (4). Technical fouls – None.  Total fouls – SPU 19, Tampa 9.  Attendance – NA.
 
 
Next game
Seattle Pacific vs. No. 11 Gannon
Saturday, 10:30 a.m.
Langley Events Center / Langley, B.C.


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