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GNAC Members
Women's Rowing Affiliates
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Seattle Pacific will be fighting Northwest Nazarene for the final spot in the GNAC Championships this week as the Falcons play two on the road and the Nighthawks host SMU.
Wednesday, February 28, 2024 PORTLAND, Ore. – With just one week remaining in the GNAC women’s basketball regular season, it’s fitting that there is just one spot left up for grabs at the 2024 GNAC Women’s Basketball Championships. The race for the final spot in the tournament field looks to be a showdown between Seattle Pacific and Northwest Nazarene with the Falcons currently holding the critical sixth-place in the GNAC standings. The Falcons are aiming to make their third straight appearance in the tournament while the Nighthawks are pushing for their first since 2022. Both teams are looking to make the GNAC Championships for a 10th time in program history. At the top of the standings, Montana State Billings has one hand on its first regular season title since the 2013-14 season when the Yellowjackets captured their one and only regular season championship. After defeating Western Washington 48-46 in Billings last week to earn at least a share of the title, the ‘Jackets hold their fate in their own hands this week as they head north to face Alaska on Thursday and Alaska Anchorage on Saturday and need just one win to lock up sole possession of the championship. Behind the Yellowjackets and the Vikings, Alaska Anchorage, Central Washington and Simon Fraser all know that they will be playing in the postseason, but still have critical games to play in order to determine their tournament seeding. The Seawolves will be the only team of those three to play two games this week as it hosts SPU and MSUB. The Wildcats will face Saint Martin’s for its lone home game of the week on Thursday before a canceled game with Western Oregon on Saturday while the Red Leafs will face WWU for its only game of the week on Saturday.
*- Clinched GNAC Championships berth | Conference records include 4 games forfeited by Western Oregon.
View the complete 2023-24 GNAC women’s basketball schedule online here.
Sunny Huerta, Central Washington Central Washington will be looking for a strong end to the regular season before it returns home to Ellensburg for the GNAC Women’s Basketball Championships in just over two weeks. Junior guard Sunny Huerta is among the best players in the conference heading into the last week of the conference slate and will likely be a key part of keeping the momentum rolling into the postseason. Huerta ranks No. 2 in the conference in scoring with 18.3 points per game, second only to teammate Asher Cai. The Whittier, Calif., native does more than just score however, ranking sixth in the GNAC with 2.6 assists per game and 14th with 1.4 steals per contest.
Huerta has notched double-digit points in each of the Wildcats’ last eight games and accomplished the feat in all but three games this season. In addition to her scoring, she has tallied at least one assist in all but three games on the year. Last time out, Huerta put up 18 points against Northwest Nazarene to go along with five assists and two rebounds. The last time Central Washington and Saint Martin’s met, Huerta finished with 11 points, seven assists, five rebounds and a steal.
With just one week remaining in the regular season, four GNAC programs are among the teams receiving votes in the NCAA regional rankings. Montana State Billings leads the way at No. 2 after defeating Western Washington in Billings last week and is closely followed by the Vikings at No. 3. Both MSUB and WWU are among four teams with at least 20 wins against in-region competition. Alaska Anchorage occupies the No. 9 spot in the ranking while Central Washington rounds out the west region field at No. 10. In the WBCA national rankings, the Yellowjackets lead the way at No. 9, the highest ranking for any team in the GNAC this season. The Vikings slipped two places to No. 15 in the ranking after splitting last week with a road loss to MSUB and a win at Seattle Pacific. Montana State Billings stayed put at No. 15 in the D2CSC national rankings while Western Washington moved down to No. 23.
Team Rankings (Top-30)
Assist/Turnover Ratio: 3. MSUB, 1.28; 7. WOU, 1.23; 27. WWU, 1.07 Assists Per Game: 5. WWU, 18.1; 18. MSUB, 16.5; 27. WOU, 15.8 Bench Points Per Game: 14. UAA, 29.3 Blocks Per Game: 5. SFU, 5.3; 9. WWU, 5.0 Field Goal Percentage: 3. WWU, 47.0 Field Goal Percentage Defense: 30. WWU, 35.7 Fewest Fouls Per Game: 25. MSUB, 14.4 Free Throw Percentage: 1. MSUB, 81.5; 23. CWU, 76.8 Free Throws Made Per Game: 18. MSUB, 15.79 Rebound Margin: 26. WWU, 6.3 Defensive Rebounds Per Game: 15. UAF, 29.3 Offensive Rebounds Per Game: 23. UAA, 15.1 Scoring Margin: 15. MSUB, 14.4; 23. WWU, 13.0 Steals Per Game: 9. UAA, 13.5 Three Point Attempts Per Game: 27. CWU, 23.9 Three Point Percentage: 16. WWU, 35.5 ; 25. CWU, 34.6 Three Pointers Per Game: 12. CWU, 8.2; 28. MSUB, 7.6 Turnover Margin: 15. UAA, 5.25 Turnovers Forced Per Game: 17. UAA, 22.17 Fewest Turnovers Per Game: 7. WOU, 12.9; 9. MSUB, 12.9 Winning Percentage: 14. MSUB, 85.7; 26. WWU, 80.8 Individual Rankings (Top-30)
Assist To Turnover Ratio: 3. Shayla Montague, MSUB, 3.14
Player of the Week - Kola Bad Bear, Montana State Billings Second-career player of the week – second this season. Bad Bear’s heroic shot came amid a stellar week overall, as she averaged 14.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and shot 52.9% overall from the floor. Bad Bear turned in her sixth double-double of the season in MSUB’s 86-59 win over Simon Fraser, scoring 18 points and adding 10 rebounds, five assists and three steals. Bad Bear made all nine of her free throws on the week and a pair of 3-pointers, while adding a pair of blocked shots. Also Nominated: Elaina Mack, UAA; Emma Wass, UAF; Asher Cai, CWU; Anjel Galbraith, SMU; Mason Oberg, WWU.
2023 CCA Canadian Tip-Off Classic D2CCAA Tipoff Classic at the Trailhead GNAC/PacWest Crossover WWU Veterans Day Classic 2023 Warrior Classic
Nov. 17-18 at Turlock, Calif. (Stanislaus State, Host)
Simon Fraser: Makenna Gardner, G (MVP); Jessica Wisotzki, G/F; Sophia Wisotzki, G
Lynda Goodrich Classic Nov. 24-25 at Bellingham, Wash. (Western Washington, Host) Central Washington: Sunny Huerta, G (MVP); Asher Cai, G Western Washington: Brooke Walling, F; Stephanie Peterson, G; Riley Dykstra, G; Mason Oberg, G 2023 Mt. McKinley Bank North Star Invitational WEST REGION SUCCESS: With non-conference action in the rearview mirror, the Great Northwest Athletic Conference solidified its place in the region with strong showings against regional competition from the CCAA and PacWest. Among the conference’s 10 teams, the GNAC went 18-11 against CCAA opponents and 14-12 against opponents from the PacWest. Western Washington and Simon Fraser combined for 14 of those 32 wins, with each team going 7-2.
Points awarded on a 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis.
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