UAA junior guard Senya Rabouin – an All-GNAC second teamer – led the Seawolves with 16 points. Photo by Jacob Thompson
The Western Washington women’s basketball team couldn’t miss Friday. The Vikings hit 11 3-points in the first half and made tough drives and hit fadeaway jumpers in the second half.
There wasn’t much the Seawolves could do. Even when they defended well on a play, Western still seemed to score as the 24th-ranked Vikings killed UAA by execution in the GNAC Tournament semifinals, winning 75-60 in Ellensburg, Wash.
It wasn’t like the Seawolves mailed it in. They played with heart and hustle; they just ran into a buzzsaw as Western hit its first seven 3s and matched its season high of 14 to beat UAA in the GNAC Tournament for the first time in six attempts.
Western’s Riley Dykstra drilled 8-of-9 3s on her way to scoring 24 points. UAA fans should know the Dykstra name as that hoops family has tormented the Seawolves over the last two decades.
Her fourth triple made the Vikings 7-for-7 from long range as they took a 25-11 lead late in the first quarter. Dykstra’s seventh 3 of the first half saw Western’s lead swell to 43-30 right before halftime.
Mia Ross
UAA trailed by 15 at the break but Mia Ross made it a 10-point game when she buried a 3 to make it 57-47.
The Seawolves had a few opportunities to pull within single digits, but it never happened.
Yet they never stopped battling, a sign of a well-coached team that doesn’t need the scoreboard to tell it when to play hard.
Kya Pearson scored on a beautiful hesitation post dribble move that pulled UAA within 63-51 with six minutes to play. Mack splashed a 3 to make it 73-60 with 80 seconds left.
Mack, of King Cove, is the only Alaska player on the team. A starting guard, she logged 23 minutes and hit 4-of-7 3-pointers to register a playoff career high of 12 points.
UAA junior guard Senya Rabouin – an All-GNAC second teamer – led the Seawolves with 16 points. She went 6-for-6 from the line as UAA made all 13 free throws.
The Seawolves finished the season 19-9 and fell to 7-3 all-time in the GNAC semifinals under coach Ryan McCarthy.