This week...
Thr., Jan. 4, 6 p.m. PST -- WOMEN'S BASKETBALL at WESTERN NEW MEXICO, Mustang Fieldhouse, Silver City, N.M.
Sat., Jan. 6, 6 p.m. PST -- WOMEN'S BASKETBALL at MONTANA ST. BILLINGS, Alterowitz Gymnasium, Billings, Mt.

Complete 2000 Schedule

New year, long road...
While the 19th-ranked Seattle Pacific University women's basketball team will play four home games in the opening month of 2001, this week's extended road trip could more than make up for it. The Falcons (3-1, 8-1) return to the Pacific West Conference fray Thursday night (Jan. 4) at Western New Mexico (0-4, 0-9). But before the 3,524-mile excursion is completed, there's a Saturday night (Jan. 6) stop at Montana State Billings (2-2, 6-3). The Birds are back at Brougham Pavilion for a four-game homestand beginning Jan. 11 against Alaska Anchorage.

Picking up steam...
Firing on all cylinders, the Falcons are off to their best start in three years. They have won three in a row and already avenged their only loss of the season, at Western Washington Dec. 9. Seattle Pacific was victorious over the Vikings in a Dec. 16 home rematch, and followed that with home wins over Western Baptist (78-46) and Northwest College (100-65). Since Dec. 20 the team has been idle. Although the team has been hit hard by injuries, Coach Gordy Presnell (14th year) has his team outscoring opponents by an average of 21.7 points per game.

Vengeance ain't easy...
Of course Presnell & Co. would dearly love to atone for an opening-round playoff loss to Montana State Billings last March, but the Yellowjackets' home court is not exactly the ideal place to do it. Seattle Pacific is 0-9 at Alterowitz Gymnasium, and the average margin in the last six trips is 22.6 points. At the 2000 NCAA West Regional in Pomona, Ca., the 'Jackets pulled away in the second half for 79-64 win.

Gus busting loose...
Over the holidays the Falcons should have been svelte and happy. They were solid in defeating Western Washington, 83-73, and coasted to a couple non-conference victories. Forward Gus Balogh (Sr., 5-11, Szombathely, Hungary) continued to make her way up the career scoring list. Balogh, third in PacWest scoring while averaging 19.8 points, is 138 behind Tosca Lindberg (1990-93) for No. 6 all-time at SPU. Against Northwest College, Balogh scored the game's first 10 points en route to an 11-17 shooting, 24-point night. In the last six games Balogh is shooting 61 percent from the field and, for the season, has scored 20 or more points six times.

Hughes plays huge...
Point guard Kerie Hughes (So., 5-7, Mount Vernon, Wa.) was the go-to girl in the Western game. Hughes contributed a career-high 26 points on 8-12 shooting to earn PacWest player of the week. The conference leader in steals (3.4), she dealt a career-high 11 assists versus Northwest College to move up to No. 2 in the PacWest (6.8).

Post-heaven...
If the Falcons were thin in numbers at the post positions to start the season, they are full to the brim near the midway point. Jana Holme (Sr., 6-1, Tacoma, Wa./Wilson) and Liz Guppy (Sr., 6-3, Beaverton, Or./Westview) are back in the starting lineup after preseason injuries knocked them down or out early. Holme hit a pair of 3-pointers and yanked down a team-high seven rebounds in the Western game while Guppy pulled down seven boards and had nine points. Valerie Gustafson (Fr., 6-0, Olympia, Wa./Black Hills) is coming off two games in which she combined to score 32 points while shooting 58 percent (15-26) from the floor. Gustafson is third on the team in, averaging 10.0 points.

Guards heat it up...
Stephanie Urrutia (So., 5-9, Sunnyside, Wa.) tallied double-digits in all three wins, racking up 40 points altogether. But beyond that she passed for career-high eight assists against Western Baptist and totaled 15 rebounds and shot 57 percent (16-28) in those outings. Urrutia is now second to Balogh on the team in scoring, averaging 11.4. Transfer guard Brianne Prescott (Jr., 5-7, San Jose, Ca./Mitty-San Jose CC) managed to drill five treys in the wins. Prescott, who missed the first three games with an ankle sprain, is averaging 8.5 points and has knocked down 11 treys in her last four games, including four vs. Northwest College.

Poe out for season...
Kristin Poe (So., 5-8, Enumclaw, Wa.) underwent knee surgery during the Christmas break and has been lost for the season. Poe, who was the team's top rebounder (8.3) and No. 2 scorer 12.6), was injured in the loss at Western Washington. Because she appeared in only six games, she could petition for a medical hardship to have her sophomore season of eligibility restored.

Put-backs...
Reserve center Stacie Lukkes (So., 6-0, Kent, Wa./Kentwood) nearly turned in her first double-double as a Falcon in the Northwest College game, finishing with a career-high 10 points and netted nine rebounds...Kirsten Daniel (Sr., 5-7, Florence, Or./Siuslaw) is finally back after an ankle sprain forced her to miss three games. Daniel started against the Vikings and scored eight points and had six assists in the three games...Balogh is sixth in conference field-goal percentage (.540) and blocked shots (1.7)...Guppy is second in free-throw percentage (.938) and Gustafson ranks No. 8 in field goal percentage (.507). As a team, SPU leads the conference in scoring (85.4) and foul shooting (.759).

Opponent, series notes...
Western New Mexico, once one of the premier teams in the West Region, is 17-42 over the last three seasons. The Falcons have won six straight meetings with the Mustangs and lead the series 8-3...Montana State Billings leads that series 14-8, although the teams have split their regular-season meetings the past four years.

Ticket information...
General admission tickets for all home games are priced $5 for adults, $3 for students, youth and senior citizens. Reserved seats, priced $7 and $6, are available for doubleheaders such as Monday's game. Monday and Wednesday are both 2-for-1 nights. Group rates are available by call (206) 281-2085 in advance. Ticket windows open one hour prior to tip-off.

S-P-U on the W-E-B...
You can follow Seattle Pacific via the world wide web. The Falcons Online features weekly releases, rosters, schedules, updated results, histories and coaching profiles for all 12 varsity sports. You're already here!

PacWest Conference Standings

Personnel notes...
No Player Yr-Exp Hgt '00 -01 stats Hometown Notes
10 Ann Berberian Fr-HS 5-7 0.8/1.3 ast Seattle, Wa. Left team after playing in 4 games
12 Becka Beard So-1V 5-4 3.4/ 2.0 ast Bremerton, Wa. 23 points, 8-8 FGs v Pacific
20 Kerie Hughes* So-1V 5-6 9.8/6.8 ast Mount Vernon, Wa. 26 points in Western win
22 Kirsten Daniel Sr-2V 5-7 3.0/2.0 reb Florence, Or. 8 points v Northwest College
23 Brianne Prescott* Jr-TR 5-7 8.5/2.0 reb San Jose, Ca. Hit 6-10 3-pointers at WWU
24 Stephanie Urrutia* So-1V 5-9 11.4/3.4 reb Sunnyside, Wa. 8 assists vs. Western Baptist
30 Stacie Lukkes So-1V 6-0 4.7/4.1 reb Kent, Wa. 10 points, 9 rebounds v Northwest C.
31 Kristin Poe So-1V 5-8 12.5/8.3 reb Enumclaw, Wa. Injured right knee at WWU (12/9)
32 Jana Holme Sr-3V 6-1 4.8/4.0 reb Tacoma, Wa. 11 points, 7 rebounds v Pacific
33 Gus Balogh* Sr-3V 5-11 19.8/4.3 reb Szombathely, Hungary Third in PWC in scoring
40 Liz Guppy* Sr-3V 6-3 7.1/6.0 reb Beaverton, Or. 12 points at WWU; 1.3 blocks
42 Valerie Gustafson* Fr-HS 6-0 10.0/4.3 reb Olympia, Wa. 17 points vs. Western Baptist
*projected starters
Coach: Gordy Presnell (Northwest Nazarene '83) 14th year (269-112) PacWest coach of the year in '97 & '98