Seattle U Opens 2014-15 Season With Home and Away Contests: After advancing to the 2014 Western Athletic Conference tournament championship for the second straight year in as many chances, Seattle University women’s basketball opens the 2014-15 season at Long Beach State on Nov. 14 before their regular season home opener vs. Portland State on Nov. 16. Highlighting the Redhawks’ schedule this season is 20 home games, including a seven-game home stretch from Nov. 29 to Dec. 21, and the first annual Women in Leadership game on Dec. 4 at KeyArena.
Ticket Giveaway at Sunday's Game:One lucky fan in attendance on Sunday will win a total of eight tickets, four per game, to the men's (Nov. 21) and women's (Dec. 4) basketball games against Washington. The winner will be announced during halftime on Sunday following the cheer and dance team performance.
Scouting Long Beach State: Long Beach State was picked to finish fifth in the Big West preseason poll in a vote by the league media as they welcome back seven letterwinners and three redshirt juniors from the 2013-14 campaign when they went 17-15. Lauren Spargo, Alex Sanchez, and Hallie Meneses will provide senior leadership as Sanchez is a two-time All-Big West selection and Spargo received All-Big West Honorable Mention recognition last season.Scouting Portland State: Portland State was picked to finish 11th of 12 in both the Big Sky Preseason Coaches’ Poll and Media Poll as they return eight letterwinners and welcome six newcomers, including their leading scorer from a year ago, Emily Easom. The Vikings opened the season with a pair of exhibition wins vs. George Fox (71-69 on Nov. 2) and Lewis & Clark (74-56 on Nov. 8) and will officially open the regular season on Sunday in Seattle.
Seattle U Picked to Contend For WAC Title Preseason Polls: In a vote of the Western Athletic Conference women’s basketball media, the Redhawks were picked to finish second in the WAC in 2014-15 while in the league’s Coaches Poll, SU was chosen to finish third. In the media poll, Seattle U also received one first place vote. Sophomore Wilma Afunugo, who led the league in field-goal percentage in 2013-14 as a freshman, was named Preseason Second Team All-Conference by the league’s women’s basketball media. College Sports Madness also named junior Taelor Ross to the Preseason Second Team All-Conference list.
Women in Leadership Game Set For Dec. 4: The first annual Women in Leadership game will take place on Dec. 4 as the Redhawks host Washington at KeyArena at Seattle Center. Seattle U women’s basketball will honor several key leaders in the Seattle community and a special pregame networking event will take place for emerging female leaders. Stay tuned to GoSeattleU.com as the event nears for more information.
In With the New: Seattle U WBB welcomes six newcomers to the 2014-15 squad: Jazmine Johnson (Lakewood, Calif.), Jacinta Beckley (Wellington, N.Z.), Crystal Allen (Fort Worth, Texas), Delanie Parry (Beaverton, Ore.), Ashlyn Lewey (Spokane, Wash.), and Cydnee Ceballos (Phoenix, Ariz.). Parry will have to sit out the 2014-15 season due to NCAA transfer rules.
Kristen O’Neill Selected to WBCA Assistant Coaches Leadership Workshop: O’Neill was one of only 40 coaches across the country chosen for an elite program sponsored by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). The leadership workshop, taking place from Aug. 26-29, 2014 in Parris Island, S.C. at the Marine Corps Recruiting Depot, provided coaches with innovative training and motivational techniques to aid in preparing their respective teams for the upcoming season and years ahead.
Bonvicini Hires Vivian Frieson: Vivian Frieson joined the Seattle U women’s basketball staff as an assistant coach in May 2014. Most recently, she served as video coordinator for Oregon women’s basketball and prior to Oregon, she worked with the Gonzaga women’s basketball program in several different capacities including as an interim assistant coach, administrative assistant, camp counselor, video coordinator, and organizer. A 2010 graduate of Gonzaga, she helped lead the Bulldogs to their inaugural Sweet Sixteen appearance the same year and was selected as the 31st pick in the 2010 WNBA Draft by the Tulsa Shock (first Zag in women’s basketball history to be drafted by the WNBA). A Seattle native, she is also a graduate of Garfield High School.
Eliot Mar Joins Staff: Eliot Mar, who previously served as a team manager for two seasons, was hired as the team’s Coordinator of Operations after earning his bachelor’s of science in General Science with concentrations in chemistry and biology from Seattle University in 2014.