BELLINGHAM, Wash. — Freshman forward Kelsey Rogers scored a career-high 21 points as three Vikings finished in double-figure scoring and the Western Washington University women’s basketball team used a commanding third quarter to pull away from visiting Concordia in an 84-68 victory Saturday night on WECU Court at Carver Gym in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
The Vikings (10-12, 6-8 GNAC) won their third consecutive game to earn a split of the season series against the Cavaliers (12-10, 6-8 GNAC) and move into a tie for 6th with Concordia in the conference standings.
After trailing 32-22 at the end of the first quarter, the Vikings answered by outscoring the Cavaliers 24-12 in the second period en route to a 46-44 halftime lead. A dominant third quarter helped WWU take control of the game with a 22-3 run to start the period on their way to a 71-51 advantage after three quarters.
Rogers (Bothell, WA/Lynnwood) scored 8 consecutive points for WWU to start the run during the third quarter and 3-pointers from freshman guard Emma Duff (Tumwater, WA/Black Hills) and sophomore guard Lexie Bland (Ellensburg, WA) on back-to-back possessions also helped fuel the rally as the Vikings opened a 62-45 lead with 3:58 left in the period. The Vikings defense held the Cavaliers to a single point for the first 7:20 of the period, including a scoreless stretch of nearly 7 minutes.
“We feel like our game is based off our defense,” head coach Carmen Dolfo said on the postgame show. “And if our defense goes, then I think it really gets our offense going. I think we had some players step up tonight, Kelsey Rogers was great and Emma Duff — our two freshmen each had another great game.”
Saturday’s third quarter mirrored a similar third quarter for the Vikings in a 66-46 win over Western Oregon on Thursday during which WWU had held the Wolves to just two points and no field goals for the first 6:25 of the period.
WWU stayed in control during the fourth quarter on Saturday, never letting its lead dip below 15 points en route to the final margin.
“I thought they moved the ball really well and found open people,” Dolfo said. “We can get into a running game when we play good defense.”
The Cavaliers had a strong start to the game, opening a 17-8 lead at the 5:28 mark in the first quarter after making 7-of-8 from the field to start the contest. The 32 points scored by Concordia in the first period were tied for the most allowed in a quarter by the WWU defense during the season.
The Vikings used a 7-0 spurt to begin the second quarter and eventually tied the game at 35-35 with 4:09 to play before halftime. Later in the quarter, WWU took its largest lead of the game to that point at 44-39 before the Cavaliers battled back to tie the game in the final minute. A pair of free throws from Rogers with 27 seconds left before the half gave WWU the 46-44 halftime lead.
Rogers was an efficient 8-of-11 from the floor off the bench and made 5-of-6 free throws. She scored 11 points during the dominant third quarter and also added 7 rebounds, 3 blocks, a pair of assists and a steal during the game to fill up the stat sheet.
Junior guard Bobbi Westendorf (Auburn, WA/Tacoma CC) added a career-best 11 points, all before halftime, and 9 rebounds during 16 minutes of playing time, making 3-of-3 from the field and 3-of-5 at the free throw line. Bland also totaled 11 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field and went 2-for-4 at the free throw line, tying for the game-high with 5 assists as well.
Sophomore center Anna Schwecke (Evergreen, CO/Colorado-Colo. Springs) added 9 points and 6 rebounds, with junior center Nikki Corbett (Camas, WA) totaling 8 points in 7 minutes of action. Sophomore guard Dani Iwami (Seal Beach, CA/Hawai’i Pacific) had 7 points and tied for the game-high with 5 assists while Duff also finished with 7 points. Senior forward Hannah Stipanovich (St. Louis, MO/Metro State) contributed 6 points while redshirt freshman guard Gracie Castaneda (Arlington, WA) added 4 points to round on the scoring.
The Vikings shot a season-high 58.7% from the field (27-of-46), including 10-of-15 (66.7%) during the dominant third quarter. WWU made 5-of-12 (41.7%) from 3-point range, led by Westendorf (2-of-2). The Vikings were 25-of-31 (80.6%) at the free throw line to set season-high marks for free throws made and attempted.
The Cavaliers were 22-of-63 (34.9%) from the field, making 12-of-15 (80%) from the floor in the first quarter before being held to 10-of-48 (20.8%) the rest of the way.
Senior guard Danielle Hartzog led Concordia with 19 points, with junior guard Keesha Sarman (13 points) and junior forward Bailey Cartwright (10 points) also reaching double figures.
The Vikings travel to face Saint Martin’s (Feb. 8, 7 pm) and Seattle Pacific (Feb. 10, 7 pm) next week before playing three of their last four regular-season games at home. All games will stream live online via WWUVikings.com/Live.
Game Notes: Vikings are 6-8 (T-6th) in GNAC play with six conference games left… top six teams in regular season standings qualify for GNAC Championships…Vikings held Concordia to 34.9% from the field and have limited each of last four opponents to 35.0% or less from the floor…WWU shot a season-best 58.7% from the field…best percentage since shooting 63.6% at Alaska Fairbanks on 12/01/16…Vikings were 25-of-31 at the free throw line for season-high free throws made and free throws attempted totals…highest totals since going 28-of-39 at the line vs. Holy Names on 11/26/16…Concordia scored 32 points in the first quarter, tied with Northwest Nazarene on 1/18/18 for most points by a WWU opponent in a quarter…WWU earned a split of the regular-season series vs. Concordia (Cavaliers won first matchup, 70-61, in Oregon on 01/04/18)…Kelsey Rogers set career highs in points (21), field goals made (8), free throws made (5) and free throws attempted (6)…also tied her career-high with 3 blocks…Bobbi Westendorf set career-best totals with 11 points, 3 field goals made, 2 3-pointers made and 5 free throws attempted…tonight’s victory was the 1,003rd in program history.
