“We had a really good first half,” said head coach Joan Bonvicini. “I thought we played aggressive defense, rebounded well. I thought it was really a well-rounded game. Unfortunately, towards the end of the first half, we started to let them back in the game so they got confident, but we showed composure down the stretch.”
Katie Kuklok put the Wolverines ahead with an early three-pointer but Sylvia Shephard (Alta Loma, Calif.) gained the lead, 4-3, on a pair of free throws and the Redhawks went on an 11-2 run to lead by double digits, 15-5, at 12:51.
Whitney Jenkins and Kacie Sowell (Ventura, Calif.) traded baskets as SU remained in the double digit lead and despite two straight Utah Valley baskets, the Redhawks would lead again by eight three different times over the next three and a half minutes. Makenna Clark (Lake Tapps, Wash.) extended the lead to 11, 26-15, at 8:14 with a three-pointer.
Seattle U extended the lead to as many as 23, 38-16, by the 4:06 mark on a four-minute long 12-1 run. Wilma Afunugo (Plano, Texas) added two layups on the run while Clark added five points and Ashley Ward (Irvine, Calif.) contributed a three.
Rhaiah Spooner-Knight went 3-for-4 from the free throw line near the three-minute mark on two straight trips to the line while Georgia Agnew added a layup to bring the Wolverines within 16, 39-23, at 2:29.
Renee Dillard-Brown (Seattle, Wash.) would give the Redhawks another 20-point lead, 43-23, on a layup with a minute and a half before halftime. Spooner-Knight and Agnew went a combined 3-for-4 from the line with less than a minute remaining and Jenkins hit a jumper but the Redhawks led by 14, 43-29, at half.
Afunugo earned her second career start in the contest after last starting in the Thanksgiving Tournament championship vs. Cornell on Nov 30, 2013.
After Spooner-Knight and Sam Loggins added layups to start the second half, Utah Valley went on a 7-4 run over the next four minutes to trail by just six, 47-41, at 14:22, following a jumper by Spooner-Knight.
Back-to-back-to-back layups by Sowell, Shephard, and Clark regained a 14 point Redhawk lead at 11:57, but the Wolverines would fight back to trail by just five, 59-54, four minutes later.
Utah Valley would come within just two, 63-61, at 4:15 on a three-point play by Jenkins surrounded by two nearly two minute bouts of scoreless play for either team. A free throw by Loggins would bring UVU as close as they would come, within one, 63-62, with 2:21 remaining. Seattle U would, however, fend off the Wolverines as Ward and Shephard would combine to go 4-for-4 from the line as the Redhawks came away with the 69-65 win.
Shephard led all players with 20 points while Sowell grabbed a game-high nine rebounds. Ward (12 points) and Afunugo (10 points) also scored in double figures while Clark tied her career high with 14 points. Agnew led Utah Valley with 17 points and seven rebounds.
Seattle U shot 50 percent (28-for-56) from the field and 71.4 percent (10-for-14) from the free throw line, while Utah Valley shot 44.1 percent (26-for-59) and 62.5 percent (10-for-16) in those two categories, respectively. Both teams struggled from three-point land, each only making three such baskets apiece. The Redhawks also outrebounded the Wolverines, 36-30.
The Redhawks welcome Bakersfield (14-8, 8-2 WAC) on Saturday, Feb. 15 at 4 p.m. The Roadrunners recently knocked off Idaho, the WAC leader, on Feb. 13 in Moscow. The game is the “Daddy and Daughter” game where daddy/daughter pairs will receive a special $8 ticket deal for both tickets.