In the third meeting between Northwest rivals, including the second within a week, Seattle University and the University of Idaho played another close game that came down to the end, but this time it was the Vandals who finished ahead, defeating the Redhawks, 67-64, to win the Western Athletic Conference Tournament championship Saturday afternoon at the Orleans Arena.
Sylvia Shephard (Alta Loma, Calif.) started off the second half with a steal and a layup, and Kacie Sowell (Ventura, Calif.) followed with a jumper to put the Redhawks ahead by three, 31-28. Idaho answered right back with baskets by Ali Forde and Stacey Barr to retake the lead, and the two teams traded baskets for the next three minutes. A basket off the glass by Sowell tied the game at 38-38, and Shephard followed with a steal and an assist to Daidra Brown (Seattle, Wash.) for a fast-break bucket to put the Redhawks ahead, 40-38, with 13:50 left in the second half.
After Jessica Graham hit a layup to tie the game at 40-40, Shephard hit a jumper, and Ashley Ward (Irvine, Calif.) contributed a three-pointer as the shot clock was running out to put the Redhawks ahead by five, 45-40, with 11:14 remaining in the second half. Krissy Karr converted a traditional three-point play for the Vandals to close the gap to two at 47-45, and the teams traded points for the next four minutes.
Down 50-47, Idaho stormed back with two made free throws from Forde and a jumper by Barr to go ahead, 51-50, but the Redhawks pulled back ahead with four minutes to go in regulation on a fast-break layup by Brown. The Vandals took control of the game with nine unanswered points to go back on top, 60-52, with 1:20 left in the second half thanks to two free throws from Connie Ballestero, a layup by Alyssa Charlston, a basket by Barr, and a three-pointer by Charlston.
Idaho missed a couple of free throw attempts in the final minute, and Seattle U closed its deficit to three with 7.2 seconds remaining in regulation on baskets by Brown and Shephard. Idaho failed to inbound the ball, allowing the Redhawks one final possession, but two three-point attempts were off target, giving Idaho the conference tournament title and the automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
"This is a disappointing loss for us. I give credit to Idaho, they came out firing in the first half with early threes. Then we really started playing some defense and got back in the ballgame. We had every opportunity to win this game, but we missed a ton of free throws plus some layups, and put ourselves in a hole late. I want to credit our team for a great comeback," Seattle U head coach Joan Bonvicini said.
Seattle U scored the first four points of the game on baskets by Sowell and Maggie McCarthy (Burlingame, Calif.), but Idaho responded with a 14-4 scoring run that included four three-pointers, two by Ballestero. The Redhawks struggled in the shooting department for an eight-minute stretch, going just 3-for-15 from the field from the first minute of the contest through the halfway point of the first half.
Idaho (17-15) extended its lead to 10 at 23-13 with eight minutes remaining in the first half thanks to a 9-2 scoring run, starting with back-to-back baskets by Forde and capped by five unanswered points from Charlston. Seattle U fought back, going on a 12-1 scoring run, including four points apiece by Sowell and Kristin Stoffel (Mill Creek, Wash.), to briefly take the lead at 27-26 before a basket by Graham put the Vandals back on top at halftime, 28-27.
Sowell led the Redhawks with her 16th double-double of the season, collecting 17 points and 15 rebounds. Shephard, named to the All-Tournament Team along with Sowell, earned 13 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and three steals, while Brown finished with 12 points, five rebounds, and three steals and Ward added 11 points, six rebounds, and two steals.
Stacey Barr, the MVP of the WAC Tournament, scored all of her 16 points in the second half, plus she notched a double-double by pulling down 11 rebounds, leading Idaho in both categories. Charlston collected 15 points, while Forde accumulated 11 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals, and six blocked shots.
Seattle U shot just 33.8 percent (25-of-74) from the field, including 3-of-11 from behind the three-point line, and 45.8 percent (11-of-24) from the free throw line. The Redhawks dominated the boards, collecting 52 rebounds, including 25 offensive boards that led to 25 second chance points, and scored 19 more points off 18 Idaho turnovers.
The Vandals shot 44.2 percent (23-of-52) from the field, including 6-of-20 from behind the three-point line, and 78.9 percent (15-of-19) from the free throw line. Idaho, which will make its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 1985, won its three games in the WAC Tournament by a total of seven points after two-point victories over San Jose State in Wednesday's quarterfinals and over Utah State in Friday's semifinals.
"I told the team after the game that when something disappointing happens, you can put it in your trunk and have it weigh you down, or you can put it in your gas tank, use it as fuel, and learn from it," said Bonvicini. "That's what we want to do. We need to get over this quick because we will have another opportunity to play sometime this week."
Seattle University (20-10), by virtue of its regular season conference championship, is guaranteed a spot in the Women's NIT. The 64-team bracket is scheduled to be announced sometime between 8 and 9 p.m. Pacific Time Monday night, March 18, with the first round games scheduled to take place Wednesday through Friday, March 20-22. For more information on the Women's NIT, visit www.womensnit.com.