Thursday, March 2, 2023

BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Seattle Pacific proved that it can’t be counted out at any stage after mounting a come-from-behind victory to defeat Alaska Anchorage 69-65 and advance to the semifinals of the 2023 GNAC Women’s Basketball Championships.

 The Falcons captured the hard-fought win after six lead changes in a game that refused to name a victor until the final buzzer. Senior forward Natalie Hoff led the way for Seattle Pacific with career-high 21 points on 7 of 11 from the field, 1 of 2 from three-point range and a perfect 6 of 6 from the free-throw line. She was followed by her sister, sophomore guard Maya Hoff, who notched 11 points along with sophomore guard Anna Eddy.

After an incredibly physical first half, Alaska Anchorage headed into the locker room with a slim 35-34 lead. The Seawolves knocked down their points via volume-shooting, going 11 for 32 from the field and 6 for 10 from long range to open the game. Junior guard Vishe’ Rabb led the charge for UAA in the first half with 11 points on 2 of 8 from the field, 1 of 3 from three-point range and 6 of 6 from the free-throw line. Rabb finished the night as the leading scorer for the Seawolves with 16 points to go with three steals, two blocks and an assist.

On the other side of the court, it was Natalie Hoff who paced the Falcons in the first half with 15 points on 6 of 7 from the field, 1 of 1 from long range and 2 of 2 from the charity stripe. She was incredibly efficient to start the game, not missing a shot until the 17th minute of the contest.

The physical nature of the matchup showed itself in the foul totals at the end of two quarters. Between the two squads, 15 personal fouls were committed by the end of the first half, with nine being handed to the Seawolves.

Alaska Anchorage continued to press ahead coming out of halftime, outscoring SPU 20-14 in the third quarter to edge ahead 55-48 heading into the final period. Senior forward Kimani Fernandez was particularly strong in the third quarter for UAA, notching two points, an assist and two steals while maintaining a steady presence on the court.

The final frame was the most frenetic of the night as both teams refused to give an inch on the court. Sophomore point guard Hailey Marlow came up big down the stretch for SPU, knocking down a critical three-pointer with just under six minutes left to play to keep the Falcons within striking distance down 63-60. Marlow finished the game with six points on a perfect pair of three-pointers to go with two assists.

Arguably none played bigger in the final minutes, however, than Eddy who came up with a huge block on a potential game-tying three-pointer by UAA’s Jahnna Hajdukovich with just 19 seconds remaining in the game. Eddy’s free throw with three seconds left then put the Falcon’s lead out of three-point range.  She finished the game shooting 4 for 8 from the field and 2 for 5 from long range to go with three blocks, a steal and an assist.

With the win, Seattle Pacific advances to face No. 1 seed Western Washington in the semifinals on Friday at 7:30 p.m. in Bellingham.