Tuesday, January 24, 2017

PORTLAND, Ore. — With the first half fo the 2016-17 GNAC women’s basketball season wrapped up, Alaska Anchorage is a perfect 10-0 in the GNAC standings as the Seawolves look for a record-tying third consecutive GNAC title.

The Seawolves open the second half of conference play on Tuesday night against the Alaska, which is on a three-game winning streak, including a 72-59 win over Seattle Pacific on Saturday. On Thursday, Seattle Pacific and Northwest Nazarene will have a rematch after the Crusaders handed the Falcons their first loss of the season. The two squads are now tied for fourth place in the GNAC standings.

Concordia is in seventh place in the GNAC standings, but is only one game behind a four-way tie for fourth place. The top six teams in the conference will advance to the GNAC Championships in March. Concordia will host Simon Fraser and Western Washington this week. Montana State Billings will travel to Alaska this week to face Alaska Anchorage on Thursday and Alaska on Saturday. The Yellowjackets got a split in their trip to Alaska last year.

All GNAC games are now available to be watched on Roku streaming.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Taylor Peacocke
Western Washington
G • 5-9  • Sr. • Kenmore, Wash.

Peacocke exploded for 68 points in two wins for the Vikings for her third GNAC Player of the Week honor. She scored a career-high 41 points in Tuesday’s 84-72 win at Simon Fraser, which was the second most points in a single game in WWU history and tied for the third best in GNAC history. Peacocke went on to score 27 points in Saturday’s 63-59 win over Montana State Billings. She converted a four-point play with 1:28 left to give WWU the lead and scored Western Washington’s final eight points of the game.

Also Nominated: Sydney Azorr (Western Oregon), Autummn Williams (Alaska Anchorage), Kailee Skjold (Alaska), Ellie Logan (Northwest Nazarene), Bailey Cartwright (Concordia).

AROUND THE GNAC

ALASKA
• The Nanooks picked up their first weekend sweep in GNAC play this season, beating Saint Martin’s 61-53 before upsetting Seattle Pacific, 72-59. The three-game winning streak is Alaska’s longest this season.
• The Nanooks rank in the top 10 in the nation for free-throw percentage, making 78.5 percent of attempts.
• Jordan Wilson tallied 42 points this week and had a double-double against Saint Martin’s with 25 points and 11 rebounds. She is now averaging 22.2 points per game this season, which is the second most in Division II behind Western Washington’s Taylor Peacocke. Wilson also cracked the top 10 on the GNAC all-time scoring list with 1,594 points.
• Wilson made 16 of 23 shots last week and is now making over 60 percent of her field goals, which leads the GNAC and ranks seventh in Division II. She moved into fifth place in the GNAC all-time for career field goals made with 629, which is just one behind fourth place. She only needs 51 more field goals this year to become the all-time leader.
• Kailee Skjold recorded 18 rebounds last week to remain the GNAC’s rebounding leader with 9.5 per game, which ranks 48th in program history. Skjold had a double-double against Seattle Pacific with 19 points and 12 rebounds. She now has a GNAC-best eight double-doubles this year.
• Jaylee Mays recorded 11 steals this week to move up to second in the GNAC in steals with 2.59 per game.
• Mays made 8 of 21 shots from beyond the arc last week to become the GNAC leader in 3-pointers made per game with 2.94, which ranks 24th in Division II. She ranks fifth in GNAC history for her career with 2.28 made per game.
• The Nanooks will play at Alaska Anchorage on Tuesday and then host Montana State Billings on Thursday.

ALASKA ANCHORAGE
• The Seawolves increased their GNAC-best winning streak to 13 games with a 71-62 win at Seattle Pacific and then a 78-41 win at Saint Martin’s.
• Alaska Anchorage is ranked No. 3 in the WBCA national poll and No. 2 in the D2SIDA poll. The Seawolves also remained the unanimous No. 1 in the D2SIDA West Region rankings.
• The Seawolves rank in the top 5 in NCAA Division II for scoring offense and scoring defense and have the second-best scoring margin average at 31.4.
• The GNAC’s all-time steals leader Kiki Robertson has 3.67 steals per game this year, which ranks fifth in Division II. As a team the Seawolves have a Division II-best 17.1 steals per game.
• Autummn Williams scored 29 points against Seattle Pacific and is now averaging 18.8 points per game, which ranks 28th in Division II and third in the GNAC. Williams is also averaging 2.59 steals per game, ranking 40th in the nation.
• Tara Thompson has made 44.6 percent of her 3-point attempts, which is the 13th best mark in the nation. Against Saint Martin’s, Thompson made 3 of 7 from 3-point territory.
• As a team, the Seawolves rank fifth in Division II in assist-turnover ratio, while Robertson and Yazmeen Goo rank 11th and 12th, respectively.
• The Seawolves’ 13-game winning streak is the 11th longest in GNAC history and the second longest by UAA as a member of the GNAC. Their longest streak was 22 wins in the 2008-09 season.
• Alaska Anchorage was a perfect 7 for 7 from the charity stripe against the Saints. It was the sixth time this year that a GNAC team has gone an entire game without missing from the free-throw line.
• The Alaskan rivalry will be renewed on Tuesday night in Anchorage, which just got a foot of snow on Sunday and will continue to receive snow until tipoff. Then the Seawolves will host Montana State Billings on Thursday.

CENTRAL WASHINGTON
• The Wildcats had split results against the Oregon schools last week, beating Western Oregon 77-63 before taking a narrow 59-57 loss to Concordia on Saturday.
• Jasmin Edwards is averaging 4.8 assists per game, which ranks fourth in the GNAC and 45th in Division II this year. Edwards also leads the GNAC in minutes played per game.
• Edwards had a total of nine assists last week to move up to No. 16 on the all-time career steals list in the GNAC with 358.
• Taylor Baird has made 52.7 percent of her field-goal attempts this year, ranking 32nd in Division II.
• Central Washington will host Saint Martin’s on Thursday and Seattle Pacific on Saturday. The Wildcats split against these two teams the first time around.

CONCORDIA
• Concordia got its first weekend sweep in GNAC play in its history as a member of the conference in dramatic fashion. On Thursday, the Cavaliers defeated Northwest Nazarene 89-87 on an overtime buzzer-beating put back. Then on Saturday, the Cavaliers came up with five consecutive defensive stops in the final two minutes of play to preserve a narrow lead for a 59-57 victory.
• After entering the week 0-4 in road games, Concordia won both of its games on the road last week.
• Jordyn Peacock has recorded 43 blocks this year which leads the GNAC and her 2.4 blocks per game is double what anyone else in the GNAC has. She had five against NNU, which was her second highest tally this season.
• Danielle Hartzog made 6 of 8 shots from beyond the arc against Northwest Nazarene, including one to tie the game in the final seconds of overtime.
• Peacock got the game-winning basket against NNU on Thursday. After forcing a five-second violation, Concordia got the ball back with the game tied in the final seconds. After a shot bounced off the glass, Peacock grabbed the board and put it right back in as time expired for the victory.
• Concordia returns to LCEF Court this week to host No. 21 Simon Fraser on Thursday and No. 15 Western Washington on Saturday.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• The Yellowjackets joined seven other GNAC teams to fall victim to the Simon Fraser-Western Washington double, losing to both teams on the road last week.
• The Yellowjackets came as close as any GNAC team has to beating WWU in over a month. They led by two with less than two minutes to go before Division II’s leading scorer Taylor Peacocke converted a four-point play.
• Montana State Billings has allowed only 13.4 turnovers per game this year, which leads the GNAC and ranks 23rd in Division II.
• Rylee Kane registered 18 points and five assists in both games. She now has 5.6 assists per game this season, which ranks 20th in Division II. Kane has also brought her scoring average up to 12.4 after scoring 78 points in the last four games.
• Tiana Hanson led the team in rebounding for the fifth consecutive game against WWU. She now has 125 rebounds this year.
• The Yellowjackets will travel to Alaska this week to play the Seawolves on Thursday and the Nanooks on Saturday.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• The Crusaders took a pair of narrow losses at home last week to Concordia and Western Oregon. They led by as much as five in overtime against Concordia before falling 89-87 in overtime on a buzzer-beating tip-in. On Saturday, the Crusaders led by seven with under four minutes left to play before Western Oregon pulled off a 78-75 victory.
• Kaitlyn Merritt is the new national leader in Division II for assist-turnover ratio with exactly four assists for every one turnover this year. Last week she dished out 12 assists and only turned the ball over once.
• Merritt’s role on the team has been purely that of a distributor and she has distributed the ball to more than anyone in the GNAC. The Crusaders have 13 players on the team with at least 40 points scored this year, which is the most in the conference. Merritt, however, is not one of those players despite being the only player on the team to start every game this season.
• Ellie Logan made 3 of 4 free throws last week to remain in the top 10 in GNAC history for career free-throw percentage at 85.3.
• Danielle Jardine became the Crusaders leading rebounder for the season with 20 rebounds last week to boost her average for the season to 5.9 per game.
• Northwest Nazarene will host Seattle Pacific on Thursday. Earlier in the year, the Crusaders handed the Falcons their first loss of the year. The Crusaders will then host Saint Martin’s on Saturday.

SAINT MARTIN’S
• Hosting the Alaska schools last week, Saint Martin’s took two losses, falling to Alaska, 61-53, and then to Alaska Anchorage on Saturday, 78-41.
• Saint Martin’s came close to pulling off a big upset at home on Thursday, holding a 10-point lead against Alaska in the third quarter. The Nanooks, however, scored 25 points in the last eight minutes of the game to pull off the comeback.
• The Saints got double-doubles from both Elin Johansson and Mercedes Victor against Alaska. Johansson tallied 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Victor had 13 points and 10 rebounds.
• Johansson scored another 16 points on Saturday and is now averaging 13.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game this year.
• The Saints will play at Central Washington on Thursday and then switch time zones to play Northwest Nazarene on Saturday.

SEATTLE PACIFIC
• Since starting the season with a perfect 11-0 record, the Falcons have dropped five of their last seven games, including losses last week to Alaska Anchorage and Alaska.
• The Falcons gave the undefeated Seawolves their most challenging road contest this season. The Falcons were the first team this year to hold a lead against UAA in the fourth quarter on their home floor. The Seawolves answered with an 11-1 run, however, to claim a 71-62 victory.
• On Saturday, the Falcons were without their leading scorer and rebounder Courtney Hollander, and they took a 72-59 loss to the Nanooks.
• The Falcons dropped to No. 6 in the D2SIDA West Region Poll.
• Seattle Pacific has the conference’s best rebounding margin, collecting 5.6 more rebounds per game than opponents.
• Julia Haining made 4 of 6 field gaols against Alaska and finished with nine points and eight rebounds. She is now averaging 5.3 rebounds per game, which is the second most on the team.
• The Falcons will play at Northwest Nazarene on Thursday in an important battle for position in the GNAC standings. Seattle Pacific will then travel to Central Washington on Saturday.

SIMON FRASER
• Simon Fraser earned a split last week with a loss at home to Western Washington on Tuesday, 84-72, before bouncing back on Thursday with an 86-72 win against Montana State Billings.
• The Clan is ranked No. 21 in the D2SIDA national poll and No. 4 in the West Region. In the WBCA poll, Simon Fraser is third among teams receiving votes.
• Ellen Kett has the third-best assists per game average in Division II with 7.1, which also leads the GNAC. As a team, Simon Fraser ranks 12th in Division II in assists this season.
• Ozi Nwabuko went 5 for 8 from the field last week to remain the conference leader in field-goal percentage at 62.6 percent.
• Meg Wilson led the team in scoring in both games last week, making 15 of 27 field-goal attempts. Her career field-goal percentage is now 53.8, which is the eighth best in GNAC history.
• Wilson has 195 career steals after collecting seven swipes last week. She needs just five more to become the 13th player in GNAC history to reach 200 career steals.
• The Clan will be in Oregon this week to face Concordia on Thursday and then play at Western Washington on Saturday.  The Clan swept the two teams when they went to Burnaby earlier this season.

WESTERN OREGON
• Western Oregon earned a split on the road last week with a 77-63 loss on Thursday to Central Washington before claiming a 63-59 win over Northwest Nazarene. In the last four minutes of the game, the Wolves went on a 15-5 run to defeat NNU despite having never previously led all game.
• Sydney Azorr made the go-ahead lay-up in the win against Northwest Nazarene on Saturday. She finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds for her first double-double this season.
• Shelby Snook scored 19 points and had five assists against Central Washington. She made 7 of 17 shots and 3 of 9 from 3-point territory. Snook is now averaging 15.5 points per game, which ranks fifth in the GNAC this year.
• Western Oregon will host Western Washington on Thursday and Simon Fraser on Saturday. Western Oregon lost to both of these teams when playing them on the road earlier this season.

WESTERN WASHINGTON
• The Vikings boosted their winning streak to nine games last week with wins over Simon Fraser and Montana State Billings. The 84-72 win over Simon Fraser put Western Washington in sole possession of second place in the conference.
• Western Washington is ranked No. 15 in the D2SIDA national poll and come in at No. 3 in the West Region. For the first time since November, the Vikings are also receiving votes in the WBCA poll.
• The Vikings lead the GNAC in field-goal percentage at 46.2 percent, which ranks 11th in NCAA Division II. The Vikings also lead the conference and rank third in free-throw percentage, making 80.3 percent.
• Taylor Peacocke scored 41 points against Simon Fraser, which is the third most points scored in a single game in GNAC history. Peacocke remains the leading scorer in Division II with 23.7 points per game.
• Peacocke added 27 points against Montana State Billings and was named GNAC Player of the Week for her efforts. It was her third time receiving the honor this year, joining a list of nine players in GNAC history to do so and only the second this decade along with Simon Fraser’s Erin Chambers.
• Peacocke ranks eighth in GNAC history in career points with 1,622. She is one point away from seventh place and only 23 points behind sixth.
• Hannah Stipanovich is the GNAC leader in free-throw percentage, making 91.2 percent of her shots from the charity stripe. That ranks fifth in Division II.
• Western Washington will look to continue its winning streak at Western Oregon on Thursday and Concordia on Saturday.