BILLINGS, Mont. – The Seattle Pacific Falcons were back in action on Saturday … their shooting, touch, however, was still on holiday break.
 
Not so for Montana State Billings.
 
Julia Lavigne scored a career-high 16 points and was one of three Falcons in double figures. But SPU hit just 34 percent from the field while the No. 6-ranked Yellowjackets shot a remarkable 60 percent on the way to a 97-57 Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball victory.
 
Hunter Beirne added 15 points and Layne Kearns chipped in 10 for Seattle Pacific (6-10, 0-3 GNAC). The Falcons were without the services of sophomore wing Grace Leasure (injury) and senior wing Lolo Weatherspoon (flu). Both had worked their way back into the starting lineup during December, with Weatherspoon having popped for a pair of 20-pointers during the month.
 
The two teams were coming off long Christmas breaks – 14 days for the Falcons, 15 for the Yellowjackets.
 
SPU hit just 4 of 13 in each of Saturday's first two quarters inside Alterowitz Gymnasium. Even so, they were within eight points early in the second quarter and were down just nine close halftime when the Yellowjackets (14-2, 3-0 GNAC) went on a 8-2 spurt to take a 44-29 lead.
 
Billings effectively broke it open at the start of the third quarter, scoring the first nine points to make it a 24-point difference at 53-29. Matter of fact, the Yellowjackets hit their first nine shots  (two of those from behind the arc) plus a pair of free throws.
 
By the time they finally missed their first shot of the quarter with 3:32 on the clock, their lead had ballooned to 30 at 66-36.
 
 

"I felt pretty confident going into it, but they had our number," head coach Karen Byers said. "It was a defensive breakdown. We just weren't being physical enough. You give them any inch that we're not doing well, and they're going to hunt it down and use it against us. They're just a great team.
 
"We had some different roles with different groups of people just because of our injuries and illnesses," Byes added.
 
 

Lavigne, a redshirt freshman combo forward / guard, had seen limited playing time through the first 15 games, averaging 2.0 points and 2.5 rebounds in 6.7 minutes. On Saturday, with Leasure and Weatherspoon both out action, she saw a career-high 24 minutes (double her previous high of 12). Lavigne hit 5 of 11 from the field and grabbed five rebounds to go along with her 16 points. Her previous scoring high was eight on Dec. 17 against Pacific Lutheran.
 
"I knew she was going to get a lot of playing time (today)," Byers said. "We had a chat yesterday about her being game-ready and just coming out and being ready to play. I told her just to focus on rebounds, and the rest will come. She did just great."
 
BY THE NUMBERS
-- SPU hit 20 of 58 from the floor (34.5 percent), and just 16.7 percent (3 of 18) from downtown.
-- Montana State Billings torched the nets at a 60.9 percent clip (42 of 69).That included 86.7 percent (13 of 15) during the third quarter. The Yellowjackets hit 50 percent (10 of 20) behind the arc. Senior forward Dyauni Boyce was 14 of 19 (73.7 percent), with 4 of 7 from long range on the way to 35 points.
-- Julia Lavigne also had two blocked shots, tying her career high set on Dec. 7 at Western Washington.
-- Sophomore guard Layne Kearns is now up to 19 straight made foul shots. Her last miss was on Nov. 16 against Azusa Pacific. For the season, she is 32 of 36 (.889).
-- Saturday's game was essentially the midpoint of SPU's season, No. 16 of 31 on the docket.
 
UP NEXT
The Falcons return home next week for a pair of GNAC games. Saint Martin's visits Brougham Pavilion on Thursday at 5:15 p.m., followed by Western Oregon on Saturday at 4:15. Both games are part of doubleheaders. The SPU men play Western Washington on Thursday at 7:30 and Simon Fraser on Saturday at 2:00.
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025
Alterowitz Gymnasium / Billings, Mont.
 
(No. 6) Montana State Billings 97, Seattle Pacific 57
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (6-10, 0-3 GNAC)
Beirne 6-13 2-2 15, Kearns 3-11 4-4 10, Rubino 2-7 1-2 5, Berry 0-3 0-2 0 Turley 1-4 1-2 3, Ohta 1-3 0-0 2, Mertes 2-4 0-0 6, Lavigne 5-11 6-8 16, Sharp 0-2 0-0 0.  Totals 20-58 14-20 57,
 
MONTANA STATE BILLINGS (14-2, 3-0 GNAC)
Williams 5-11 0-0 10, Nelson 4-8 0-0 9, Grossman 5-8 0-0 10, Boyce 14-19 3-3 35, Giese 3-3 0-0 8, Browning  0-1 0-0 0, Koester 1-1 0-0 2, Louie 2-5 0-0 4, Baumann 5-8 0-0 12, Burkhart 2-3 0-0 4, Hamilton 1-2 0-0 3, Finn 0-0 0-0 0, Ligocki 0-0 0-0 0.  Totals 42-69 3-3 97
 
Seattle Pacific                     16           13           14           14           -- 57
Montana State Billings      24           20          30           23           -- 97
 
3-point goals – SPU 3-18 (Beirne 1-3, Kearns 0-6, Rubino 0-2, Turley 0-1, Ohta 0-1, Mertes 2-3, Lavigne 0-1, Sharp 0-1), MSUB 10-20 (Williams 0-3, Nelson 1-2, Boyce 4-7, Giese 2-2, Baumann 2-4, Hamilton 1-2).  Fouled out – None.  Rebounds – SPU 25 (Lavigne 5), MSUB 39 (Nelson 8).  Assists – SPU 7 (Beirne 4), MSUB 30 (Nelson 7).  Turnovers (points allowed) – SPU 15 (19), MSUB 15 (10).  Total fouls – SPU 5, MSUB 15.  Technical fouls – None.  Attendance – 333.
 
 
Next game
Saint Martin's at Seattle Pacific
Thursday, Jan. 9    5:15 p.m.
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
 
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