“I think the big thing is that we played a pretty good first half and then let them get back in right away, they got some confidence and then got hot in the second half,” said head coach Joan Bonvicini. “We’re going to work on a lot of toughness and defense [before this weekend].”
After Washington earned the opening tip and immediately turned over the ball, Seattle U took the early lead, 2-0, on a jumper by Kacie Sowell (Ventura, Calif.) just a minute into the game.
The Redhawks would regain the lead again, 5-4, on a three-point play by Sowell at 16:13, but the Huskies then went on a 7-0 run over the next two minutes to lead 11-5.
Alexis Montgomery (Beaverton, Ore.) would cut the UW lead to three, 11-8, on a three-pointer at 14:32 and Sylvia Shephard (Alta Loma, Calif.) would do the same with a pair of free-throws, 13-10, at 12:08.
Montgomery would tie the score at 13 with a second three-pointer at 11:37 but Washington would add five straight points to lead again, 18-13, on a jumper by Kelsey Plum and a three-pointer by Jazmine Davis.
Sowell added back-to-back jumpers to trail by just one, 18-17, by the 9:21 mark and Ashley Ward (Irvine, Calif.) would hit a three to again give the Redhawks the lead again, 20-19 with just over eight minutes remaining in the first half.
The teams would trade the lead over the next three minutes and Seattle U would regain it, 22-21, on a layup by Kaylee Best (Seattle, Wash.) at the 4:39 mark.
Shephard extended the lead but a three-pointer by Heather Corral would regain the lead for Washington, 26-24, with two and a half remaining before the half. Shephard brought the Redhawks back within two, 28-26, with a layup with just under two minutes on the clock.
Aminah Williams would add an easy layup for the Dawgs with a few seconds winding down on the clock as UW led, 30-26, at the halftime break.
Washington opened up the second half with a set of jumpers by Davis and Plum to lead, 34-26, in the first minute of the half and would extend their lead to nine, 39-30, despite layups by Shephard and Ward by 17:40. UW would lead by double digits, 41-30, at 17:38 on a pair of free throws by Plum.
The Redhawks would trail by as many as 19 by the 13 minute mark following six straight points by Plum before Shephard and Sowell each added two to put SU within 15, 54-39, by the under-12 media timeout.
Despite a jumper and pair of free throws by Sowell, a layup and a three-pointer by Williams and Davis, respectively, put UW back ahead by 18, 59-41, at 9:14.
Taelor Ross (Vancouver, Wash.) added a spark for the Redhawks, scoring five of Seattle U’s next seven points before she and Renee Dillard-Brown (Seattle, Wash.) contributed a pair of jumpers but SU still trailed, 67-50, with 5:16 remaining.
Montgomery would add a three with 1:59 remaining, but UW extended their lead over the final five minutes to come away with the 82-60 victory after a last-second three by Shephard.
Sowell led the Redhawks with 14 points, while Shephard (13) and Ward (11) also scored in double figures. As a team, the Huskies outshot the Redhawks from field-goal range (49.2 percent to 31.9 percent) but Seattle U had the better shooting percentage from behind the three-point line (45.5 percent to 36.4 percent) and from the free-throw line (68.8 percent to 60.9 percent). UW outrebounded SU, 48-38.
SU (0-3) hits the road this weekend to face Portland State on Friday, Nov. 22 at 8 p.m. and Portland on Sunday, Nov. 24 at 4 p.m.