SEATTLE – Head Coach Brian Fogel was so proud of his Chico State women’s basketball team following Friday’s 79-68 upset of Western Washington in the first round of the NCAA Championship Tournament West Regional, he was wiping the tears from his eyes during his postgame radio interview with Wildcats’ play-by-play man Mike Baca. It perfectly encapsulated the pure emotion the ’Cats, the No. 6 seed, put on the Brougham Pavilion floor for 40 solid minutes, eliminating a Vikings squad – ranked No. 18 in the nation – that had beaten Chico State by 21 points earlier in the year. The Wildcats, rallying from eight down early in the second half, broke open a close contest in the final three minutes, and now advance to semifinal action Saturday afternoon.
With Friday’s win, Chico State improves to 22-9 on the season and will take on Humboldt State Saturday afternoon at 5:00 p.m. for the right to move on to play in the West Region championship game Monday night. Western Washington saw its season come to an end with Friday’s loss and finishes with a 23-5 record.
“This team has heart, it has the will, it has a competitive spirit,” Fogel gushed after the game. “That is a tough Western Washington team, and even when we fell behind, we refused to give up. We kept using our speed, pushing the ball to score, and our defense was huge at the end. Everybody contributed; this is a great team win for the Wildcats.”
Chico State used 3-point baskets to do most of their offensive damage in the first half – after spotting Western Washington the first four points of the contest, the Wildcats went up 6-4 on treys by Taylor Lydon and Natasha Smith. All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference standouts Jessica Summers and Amanda Dunbar led a 10-4 Viking run to put Western Washington back in front 14-10, but the ’Cats responded with a Smith layup and an Annelise Miller 3-pointer to forge back in front 15-14.
Dunbar tallied the next seven Vikings points to put Western Washington back in front, and with the score 23-20, Chico State – on baskets by Smith, Kristin Marquardt and a 3-pointer by Courtney Harrison – went on a 9-2 run to take a 29-25 lead. Then Vikings caught the ’Cats at 34-all, but Miller delivered a layup to help the Wildcats regain the lead, and free throws in the final minute by Marquardt and Melissa Richardson gave Chico State a 39-36 halftime lead.
The Wildcats had trouble containing Summers and Dunbar, who combined for 29 points in the first period, but held the rest of the Western Washington squad to just seven points on 1-of-14 shooting. The Wildcats shot 41.9 percent in the first half and connected on five of eight 3-point attempts.
The Vikings came out firing in the second half, outscoring Chico State 14-3 in the first three minutes to take a 50-42 lead. But rather than deflate, the Wildcats stepped up to score 10 unanswered points. Richardson’s fast-break layup capped the run and put the ’Cats back in front 52-50. Western Washington took a 58-53 lead by scoring eight of the next nine points, but Chico State matched the Vikings with an 8-1 run of its own to go back in front, 61-59 as Christine Vest contributed three layups during the stretch.
Once again, Western Washington answered, with a Dunbar 3-pointer and Summers jumper putting the Vikings on top 64-61. But Western Washington couldn’t deliver the knockout punch and with four minutes to play, the Wildcats surged ahead 67-64 on baskets by Richardson, Synchro Bull and two Smith free throws. Free throws by Dunbar cut Chico State’s lead to one, but that would be the Vikings’ last hurrah as Wildcats scored 13 of the game’s last 15 points. Smith hit a jumper in the lane to get the lead back to three; Bull drained a runner and a pair of free throws to make the score 73-68, and in the final minute Lydon, Bull and Smith hit two free throws apiece to seal the 79-68 victory.
Bull and Smith led Chico State with 15 points, with Smith adding a team-high five assists. Vest finished with 11 points and seven rebounds, while Harrison contributed eight points off the bench. Summers scored a game-high 27 points for Western Washington in the losing effort.
Now the Wildcats turn their attention to Saturday’s opponent, Humboldt State. The Lumberjacks advanced to the semifinals Friday with a 76-72 upset of No. 2 seed UC San Diego. Chico State has won two of the three meetings with Humboldt State this season, but the Lumberjacks handed the Wildcats an 85-55 loss last Saturday in the CCAA Championship Tournament final.
Saturday’s NCAA West Region semifinal game will be broadcast live on ESPN 101.7 and 1340 AM locally, as well as on the Internet via the Wildcat Athletics website. Seattle Pacific University, the host school, will provide live video and Live Stats of the Chico State-Western Washington game (as well as all West Regional contests) through its official Women’s West Regional page.
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