Despite controlling the game for much of the first half, a Washington rally minutes before halftime would prove to be the difference maker Wednesday evening at Alaska Airlines Arena. Behind their offensive surge, the Huskies pushed past the Redhawks, 72-53, to hand SU their second consecutive loss on the early season.
After opening up action with possession transferring between both sides, the Redhawks responded with an offensive push ignited by Ashley Ward's (Irvine, Calif.) jumper at 13:34 in the first half.
Ward would go on to score a career-high 16 points, 11 of which came in the first half. She also grabbed three defensive boards and had a steal in 33 minutes of work.
Seattle U then forced UW's Mackenzie Argens to miss her ensuing layin and at the 13:10-minute mark a three-pointer from senior Elle Kerfoot (Surrey, B.C.) handed SU a 14-12 advantage.
The Redhawks took off on an immediate 6-0 run, in an effort to put distance between them and an aggressive Husky team.
Washington would make it as close as a one-point contest, 20-19, at 9:27 off a Jazmine Davis triple, but Talisa Rhea (Juneau, Alaska) countered with a juke drive and jumper 20 seconds later to keep SU ahead and preserve their slight advantage.
The Redhawks continued to hold the Huskies off by at least a possession until the 4:45-minute mark, when Marjorie Heard evened the game 27-all, amidst a 13-0 UW run.
"I think we were playing our game mostly .. they are a good team, but we were doing things that we wanted to do. We were running our offense well and .. getting good shots. We felt a little flustered after that and we weren't really taking the shots we wanted to take," said Ward about losing the early offensive control.
The Huskies late first half run proved to be the catalyst in their victory, as it provided Washington with momentum that they managed to carry through into the second half.
"I think we were forcing shots instead of letting the game come to us," said head coach Joan Bonvicini on Washington's first half scoring run. "It's hard when you are down and (UW) did a good job mixing things up and going to a lot of different players. I think that they showed their depth too."
After going into the break down, 36-29, Washington opened up the second half with an 8-2 run.
Still fighting to claw their way back and cut UW's double figure advantage, junior transfer Brenda Adhiambo (Mombasa, Kenya) went on to grab a pair of boards and add a layin to make it a 44-33 game at 15:04.
Washington (1-1) maintained their distance and double figure advantage, but SU continued to work to chop down their lead. With less than 11 to play, Amani Butler (Corona, Calif.) provided a lift for the Redhawks, scoring four consecutive points and adding a steal to bring Seattle U within 12, 56-44, with 7:28 to play.
Despite their strong moments, it was not enough to swing the game momentum, as Washington maintained their double digit lead and closed out the game riding a 6-3 run.
For SU, Kerfoot and Kacie Sowell (Ventura, Calif.) scored 11 points apiece. Sowell has now scored in double figures in all three games this season.
In the game, UW shot 45.5 percent (25-for-55) from the field to SU's 32.8 percent (21-for-64). In the first half, the Redhawks shot 44.0 percent (11-for-25) from the field and were a perfect 5-for-5 from the stripe.
The Husky bench held the scoring advantage, tallying 32 points to SU's nine.
Freshman Jasmine Lemon (Renton, Wash.) made her collegiate debut in the game, seeing action in the final minute of play.
"I think we are a better team than what we showed tonight .. This is a learning experience. We learn from this, we regroup, come back and have a good practice Friday, and protect our house on Saturday. This is one game that we lost and we learn from it and just get better," concluded Bonvicini.
The Redhawks (1-2) next host San Diego in game one of the Seattle U basketball doubleheader on Saturday, Nov. 19, at KeyArena. Tipoff is slated for 12:15 p.m., prior to the men's basketball game versus San Francisco at 3:10 p.m. Purchasing one ticket will provide fans with admission to both games.