By: Caden Frank
SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth women's basketball will be on the road this weekend as it faces off against the top two teams in the Northwest Conference. The Pirates will play Pacific at 6 p.m. on Friday and Willamette at 4 p.m. on Saturday as they begin their second run of conference games.
Check the Whitworth schedule page for live links to all the weekend's action, including live streaming and live stats.
The Pirates: Whitworth (6-11 overall, 3-5 NWC) split its home doubleheader last weekend beating Pacific Lutheran on Saturday before falling to Puget Sound on Sunday in overtime.
The Lutes came into town on Saturday tied for the worst record in the conference, and for much of the game the Pirates were in control. Kimberly Dewey scored 16 of her 28 points in the first half, and hit a corner three to give Whitworth a 37-27 lead at the break. The Pirates led 53-40 near the end of the third and looked prepared to coast to a win, but the Lutes rallied and cut the Pirate lead down to 57-54 with 2:55 remaining. Dewey hit five free throws in the final minutes to close it out and give Whitworth its second consecutive NWC win. Whitworth shot 39.3% from the floor (21% from three) and forced 17 turnovers in the win. Zalissa Sanfo and Mya Edwards added 12 points each.
On Sunday, the Pirates missed a golden opportunity to beat Puget Sound and move into fourth place in the conference. Twice, Whitworth built a double digit lead and twice they let it slip. The Loggers rallied past a 28-13 first half deficit and a 53-42 fourth quarter deficit to win 66-59 in overtime. Whitworth survived a 22-2 UPS run over a seven-minute span and responded with a 23-7 run to take a 53-42 lead into the fourth quarter. In the fourth quarter and overtime, Whitworth didn't make a single field goal (0-15) and committed 13 turnovers as Puget Sound completed the comeback. The loss dropped Whitworth to sixth place, two games behind UPS.
Whitworth is sixth in the conference in scoring (58.6 per game), seventh in points allowed (64.2) and average point differential (-5.5). The Pirates have struggled to shoot consistently, they're last in the conference in field goal percentage (33.9%). Dewey has continued to anchor the Pirates offensively with 17 points per game, which also leads the NWC. Aside from Sunday's game against Puget Sound, Whitworth has improved in the turnover department, they average 16.2 per game (4th in the NWC).
The Opponents: Pacific (11-5 overall, 7-1 NWC) is first on the slate for Whitworth this weekend, and it will be a tall task. The Boxers are first in the NWC standings riding a six-game win streak, and they beat Whitworth 86-47 in the first meeting of the season (their seventh straight win over the Pirates). Pacific leads the NWC in scoring (68.9 points per game), third in field goal percentage (40.4%), and second in total rebounding (40.6). Defensively, the Boxers are fourth in points allowed (59.1), and second in average point differential (+9.8). Five of their six wins during this streak have been by double figures.
Pacific is led by Brillie Kovaloff who's scoring 15.8 points per game (3rd in the NWC), she also leads the team with 20 threes on 34.5% from deep. Rilee Price is the Boxers' main distributor, she leads the conference with 69 assists (4.3 per game) while adding 7.8 points per game. The Boxers are coached by Alecia Parker who's in her fourth season. Parker was an assistant coach for Whitworth at one point, and has turned the Pacific program around in her time there.
Willamette (10-7 overall, 7-1 NWC) will be Whitworth's second game of the weekend, the Bearcats come in on a three-game win streak, tied with Pacific for first in the NWC standings. Willamette beat Whitworth 77-71 in the first meeting this season and have won the last three over the Pirates.
Offensively, the Bearcats are among the best in the conference. They average 65.1 points per game while shooting 43.1% from the field (roughly 3% higher than any other team in the NWC). In the last three games Willamette has shot a combined 53.2%, and it shot over 50% from the field in five games this season (the Bearcats are 5-0 in those games). They've made 116 threes (third in the NWC) at a 31% clip. Defensively they're sixth in points allowed per game (63.5) and opponent field goal percentage (38.2%). The Bearcats' weakness has been rebounding where they rank eighth in rebounds per game (34.8). Willamette is led by Elyse Waldal, a junior forward, averaging 13 points per game on 44% shooting. Carolyn Ho is another major contributor with 10.4 points per game and a team-leading 3.8 assists per game. Waldal is sixth in the conference in scoring, Ho is second in total assists (65). The Bearcats are coached by Peg Swadener who's in her 12th year at Willamette. Swadener is 9-12 versus Whitworth in her career.
Dewey is setting the tone: Not just for Whitworth, but for the entire conference. Dewey's scored 20 points in four of the last six games (Whitworth was 3-1 in those games), and she leads the Northwest Conference with 17 points per game. She's buried 28 three pointers (which doubles the next closest Pirate) at a 31.5% rate. Dewey is also second on the team in rebounds (6.3) and assists per game (2.2).
Get that out of here: Freshmen Zalissa Sanfo's 53 blocks rank eighth in the nation for Division III and leads the NWC. Puget Sound freshman Autumn Hill is second in blocks (51), but the next closest after that has just 19.
Crashing the boards: Sanfo also leads the conference in total rebounds (176) and rebounds per game (10.4); grabbing 23 more rebounds than Linfield's Miki Vermeulen who's in second.
The Coach: Kenny Love is in his second season as the Whitworth women's head coach. He moved over from the men's staff in 2021, and before that was involved in lots of Whitworth's basketball operations including scouting, recruiting, budgeting, and youth camps. Love is a former Pirate who earned first team All-Conference honors three times and was the 2015 NWC Player of the Year.
Looking ahead: Whitworth will be on the road against Whitman on Tuesday but returns home Friday to host Lewis & Clark.
