By MARK MOSCHETTI
Seattle Pacific Sports Information

SEATTLE -- It was just four years ago … but now, it almost seems like forever.
 
On a Monday night – Jan. 11, 2021 – the Seattle Pacific Falcons stepped onto the court for a women's basketball game against Pacific Lutheran. The only people in Brougham Pavilion were the two teams, the officials, and the scoretable folks needed to conduct the game.
 
Among the players suited up and getting ready for their first-ever college contest were SPU redshirt freshman point guard Hunter Beirne and PLU freshman forward Ava Edmonds.
 
But this was no ordinary January Monday – and it was no ordinary basketball game, either.
 
For the Falcons, it had been 317 days since the last time they played. The surreal circumstances surrounding this particular contest were because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The 2020-21 season had been canceled, but teams were allowed to put together whatever kind of independent schedule that they could muster.
 
There would be no standings. No playoffs. And no fans – no exceptions.
 
 

"It was crazy – we had nobody in the stands, and the bleachers were back so there was a large among of space in the gym," Beirne recalled. "We didn't know what the season was going to look like or how many games we were going to play. We were just taking it in and making every game count that we were able to play."
 
Seattle Pacific won, 56-51. Beirne, now in her senior year and starting at the point, played 24 minutes off the bench, hit her first seven shots and wound up with a team-leading 17 points. She also had five rebounds, one assist, and one steal.
 
"I was super-excited. I had been awhile, coming off my ACL, since I'd played. So I was excited and taking it all in," Beirne said.
 
Edmonds, now the lead assistant to Falcons interim head coach Karen Byers, played 36 minutes, scored a team-high 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting (4 of 6 downtown) and also had two rebounds, two blocks, two steals, and one assist.
 
 

"I was really nervous because our starting (center), who was a senior, was still coming back from an injury. So with her being out, I got the starting spot – which I was not super-prepared for," Edmonds said. "But I took advantage of it and obviously went out there and tried to do as much as I could."
 
Beirne and Edmonds subsequently met again on Nov. 5, 2022 when SPU beat the Lutes in Brougham, 66-33. Beirne started and had four points, four rebounds and seven assists. Edmonds started for PLU, delivering six points, two rebounds, and one blocked shot.
 
Although they'll be on the same side on Tuesday when the Falcons and Lutes tip off their non-conference encounter at 5:15 p.m. in Brougham Pavilion, Beirne and Edmonds vividly remember each other's presence during their first meeting in January 2021..
 
"From our side, we were prepared for a lot of the returners. But Hunter's name was not one that was brought up," Edmonds said. "I kept hearing it over the PA (when Beirne would make a basket),and I was like, 'Who is this girl?' I do remember that a lot and being surprised by her."
 
Beirne had a similar recollection.
 
"You prepare for the returners, and you only have a scout with so many players," she said. "Coming in, it was the same thing: 'Who is this girl who 's hitting these shots?' Nerves were high, too. So there was a lot going on at once. It was a lot to take in."
 
Because she graduated from PLU just last spring, Edmonds is well acquainted with all of the Pacific Lutheran veterans and the coaching staff.
 
"It's going to be so weird," she said with a laugh. "I've talked to some of my former teammates, and they're all super-excited. In a sense, I want us to get the ''W', but I want some of them to play a good game. That's kind of my feeling, but it'll be good to be in the gym with the again and see them play for the first time in a while."


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