By: Caden Frank
SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth women's basketball is headed to California this holiday season for a trio of non-conference road games. The Pirates take on Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Monday at 1:00 followed by Occidental and Chapman on Wednesday and Thursday at noon.
Check the Whitworth women's basketball schedule for live links to all the action as Whitworth's road trip stops in Claremont, Los Angeles, and Orange, California.
The Pirates: Whitworth (2-6 overall, 0-2 NWC) split its weekend doubleheader on Dec. 8-9, but it enters this road stint riding the momentum from a 22-point win, its largest of the season.
The Pirates lost their first game of the weekend to Colorado College 66-44 despite a 13-point, 10-rebound double-double from Kimberly Dewey. Whitworth stuck around through the first half and trailed 35-25 at half, but the game got away in the third. Whitworth was 32.7% from the field, 2-19 from deep.
On Saturday, the Pirates snapped a six-game losing streak with a 73-51 win over Schreiner. Zalissa Sanfo pulled down 20 rebounds to tie a Whitworth single-game record, she scored 12 points as well to earn her first career double-double. Dewey led the scoring attack with 25 as Whitworth got out to a 29-3 lead and never looked back. Dewey was also selected to the all-tournament team in the Whitman invitational after averaging 19 points and 9.5 rebounds per game.
Whitworth is scoring 57.1 points per game (6th in the NWC) while allowing 66.9 (9th in NWC). The Pirates are shooting 32% from the field (24.8% from deep), those numbers are on the rise in the last week. Whitworth is averaging 18 turnovers a game while forcing 11 per game. They average 37.8 rebounds per game (5th in the NWC).
The Opponents: Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (1-7 overall, 0-3 SCIAC) has lost three straight coming off its lone win of the season against East Texas Baptist on November 25.
The Athenas average 61.6 points per game and give up just 62.3 per game. Their point differential is remarkably close despite their record thus far. They're making 35.9% from the field (29.3% from three) but they are making just over 62% from the stripe. Like Whitworth, they average 19.1 turnovers per game and are -6 in turnover differential. The Athenas are led by Katie Resendiz who's scoring 11.5 points on 29% from three, Tanya Ghai adds 10.3 per game on shots mostly inside the paint. Claremont is coached by Chanel Murchison who's in her fourth season. Murchison lost to Whitworth 58-53 in her first season.
Occidental (4-1) is coming off its first loss of the season against Whittier College. The Tigers will play games on Saturday and Tuesday before its game against Whitworth, and they hope to get back in the win column.
The Tigers have been clicking on both sides of the ball, racking up 81.4 points while allowing just 56.8 per game. Their hot start included three double digit wins and a 108-23 win over Southern California Leadership. They've been quite efficient from inside the arc, shooting 45.4%, but from three they've struggled hitting just 14-64 (21.9%). The free throw line has also been a major struggle as they've hit a mere 77-135 (57%) from the stripe. However, they move the ball very well as a team (17.3 assists per game) and defensively they've forced a disruptive 17.4 turnovers per game. So Whitworth's ability to control the ball may play a key role in limiting this offense. Toni Thompson is leading Occidental with 24.6 points and 11 rebounds per game. The senior guard is a slashing threat, she's shot over 50% from the field but has not hit a three-pointer this season (0-3). The Tigers are coached by Anahit Aladzhanyan who's in her fifth season as head coach.
Chapman (3-3) will play Whitworth on Dec. 21 as the last game in a string of three on consecutive days. The Panthers beat Whitworth 55-52 in 2022 in Orange, California. They average 67.7 points per game while allowing 66.3 a game. They're shooting 39.5% from the field and allowing an identical percentage to their opponents. Most of their production comes from inside the paint, they average just about three 3s per game. Where the Panthers have made their mark is their ability to force turnovers. They average a +8 in the turnover department, forcing a whopping 22 per game leading to an average of 22.5 points per game off of turnovers. The Pirates have been rather turnover-prone so far, they will need to be on the lookout as nearly a third of Chapman's offensive scoring comes off forced turnovers.
The Panthers are led by Makena Nitao who average 12.7 points per game (almost entirely inside the paint). Layla Woods averages 11, and leads the team with 7 rebounds per game including a team-high 15 offensive boards. Chapman is coached by Carol Jue who's in her 22nd season. She's won over 300 games (67% win percentage) and is the winningest coach in program history, widely recognized with other achievements.
Dewey to All-Tournament team: Kimberly Dewey was selected to the all-tournament team following her performance in Whitman last weekend. The Senior racked up a double-double in the weekend opener and came a rebound shy of another one the next day. Dewey averaged 19 points and 9.5 rebounds per game to earn her spot. She's currently 2nd in the NWC in scoring, averaging 16.5 this season.
The Coach: Kenny Love is in his second season as the Whitworth women's coach after moving over from the men's staff in 2021. He's been involved in Whitworth's basketball operations since 2017 (scouting, recruiting, budgeting) and he's a former Pirate himself. Love was named NWC Player of the Year in 2015.
Looking ahead: Following Whitworth's run of games in California it will return home to play Whitman on January 2nd.
