NCAA Women's Basketball West Region Championship Tournament Semifinals:
SPU Women's Late First-Half Run Propels Falcons to Title Game
March 13, 2004

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SEATTLE (March 13) ­ Valerie Gustafson scored 21 points to lead top-seeded Seattle Pacific University past fourth-seeded Western Washington 80-66 in the semifinals of the NCAA Division II West Regional at Brougham Pavilion on Saturday night.

SPU's Rachel Strand prepares to shoot a free throw in the first half of Saturday's West Regional semifinal win over Western Washington. Kristin Poe (#31) readies for a rebound. (Photo courtesy Thad White, SPU athletics)

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The Falcons (29-0), who finished the regular season atop the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and ranked No. 1 in the nation with a perfect 27-0 overall record, will vie for their first trip to the Elite Eight since 1998 in the regional championship game against third-seeded Cal Poly Pomona Monday night at 7 p.m.

Gustafson (Sr., 6-0, Olympia, Wa./Black Hills) was joined in double figures by Michelle Beaumont (Jr., 5-11, Bellingham, Wa./Sehome) and Carli Smith (So., 5-11, Spokane, Wa./Valley Christian) with 14 points apiece, while Kristin Poe (Sr., 5-8, Enumclaw, Wa.) added 11 points and a team-high 10 rebounds.

After trailing 37-29 at the half, the Vikings (21-8) cut the SPU lead to 43-40 with 16:09 to play. The Falcons then went on an 11-2 run in a 4:06 span, with Smith scoring five of her nine second-half points during the stretch.

Western rallied to pull within 56-50 with 8:46 to play before Beaumont hit two treys to lead a 12-3 Falcon run, extending the SPU lead to its largest margin at 68-53. The Vikings got no closer than 10 the rest of the way. Beaumont scored 11 of her 14 points in the second half to lead the SPU charge. She made four threes (4-of-7) on the night, tying her career-high.

Seattle Pacific shot just 43 percent from the field, and struggled in the first half in particular, connecting on just 12-of-34 shots (35 percent).

“We didn't shoot the ball very well in the first half, so we did have some adversity, but we worked our way out of it," said SPU head coach Gordy Presnell.

In the first half, SPU jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead before Western rallied to take its first lead at 9-7 with 15:46 to go. The half stayed close with seven ties and four lead changes.

The Falcons trailed 27-26 with 4:36 to go before reeling off an 11-2 run to take their largest lead, 37-29, going into halftime. Freshman Rachel Strand (Fr., 6-2, Shoreline, Wa./King’s), pressed into service because of Falcon foul trouble, made 4-of-4 from the line during the run.

SPU forced 23 Viking turnovers and outrebounded Western 34-33. The Falcons hit 24-of-29 from the line and 6-of-18 from behind the arc. Seattle Pacific’s reserves outscored WWU 21-4.

Tessa DeBoer led the way for Western Washington with 26 points and 13 rebounds.

Monday's championship represents the Falcons fifth trip to a regional final since 1997. In 1998, SPU reached the Elite Eight for the deepest postseason advancement in school history. The Falcons beat Cal Poly Pomona 79-78 on Dec. 20 in their closest game of the season.

"It's going to be a battle," said Beaumont of Monday's matchup.

"This is a huge step coming up for us," said Gustafson. "We've been here (the regional championship game) before and I'm ready to move on."

SEATTLE PACIFIC UNIVERSITY 80, WESTERN WASHINGTON 66
WESTERN WASHINGTON (21-8) - DeBoer,Tessa 7-11 12-13 26; Gerald,Jodi 6-15 0-0 12; McGillivray,Jenn 4-8 2-2 10; Donahue,Tina 4-11 0-0 9; Hubbard,Samantha 2-5 0-0 5; Dressel,Stephanie 2-2 0-0 4; Davis,Dachelle 0-1 0-0 0; Dykstra,Devin 0-2 0-2 0. Totals 25-55 14-17 66.
SEATTLE PACIFIC UNIVERSITY (29-0) - Gustafson, Valerie 7-13 7-8 21; Beaumont, Michelle 5-9 0-0 14; Smith, Carli 4-6 6-6 14; Poe, Kristin 4-11 2-3 11; Taylor, Amy 2-8 4-5 9; Kroon, Brittney 2-4 0-0 4; Wood, Mandy 1-4 0-0 2; Hermanson, Trisha 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 25-58 24-29 80.

Western Washington          29 37 - 66 
Seattle Pacific University  37 43 - 80

3-point goals-Western Washington 2-17 (Donahue,Tina 1-5; Hubbard,Samantha 1-4; Davis,Dachelle 0-1; Dykstra,Devin 0-1; Gerald,Jodi 0-6), Seattle Pacific University 6-18 (Beaumont, Michelle 4-7; Taylor, Amy 1-4; Poe, Kristin 1-3; Wood, Mandy 0-2; Hermanson, Trisha 0-2). Fouled out—Western Washington-Gerald,Jodi, Seattle Pacific University-None. Rebounds-Western Washington 33 (DeBoer,Tessa 13), Seattle Pacific University 34 (Poe, Kristin 10). Assists-Western Washington 20 (McGillivray,Jenn 5; Hubbard,Samantha 5), Seattle Pacific University 19 (Taylor, Amy 8). Total fouls-Western Washington 23, Seattle Pacific University 18. A-1263