WSU’s women’s basketball team blew out the Seattle University Redhawks 80-58 in round one of the WCC tournament, punching their ticket to round two against the University of Pacific.
The Cougs brought the heat immediately off the draw, with Alex Covill winning the tip-off and immediately getting the Cougs on offense. Both the Redhawks and the Cougs went back and forth for scoring, tying the first quarter 17-17.
Covill put together a standout performance in the matchup with a total of one assist, six rebounds and 12 points. Chatfield similarly stood out with a total of four rebounds, five assists and 8 points total.
“They [her coaches and teammates] are kind of the reasons why I feel like I’m playing my best basketball right now,” Covill said “Just because they’re always playing me in great spots and they’ve just been honestly my biggest supporters so I really got to thank them.”
Eleonora Villa came back to the court back and was not afraid to take to the paint immediately, scoring the first couple points for the Cougs. Villa led with the most points of the night with a total of two rebounds, three assists and 22 points.
Going into the second quarter the Cougs did not let up on offense and defense. Malia Ruud won an offensive rebound, immediately putting it back up to the rim scoring the Cougars 2 points and scoring a 3-pointer. Ruud had seven rebounds and a total of 12 points. Keandra Koorits was not afraid to shoot from anywhere on the court. Koorits finished with one assist, three rebounds and 13 points. The Cougs end the first half with a 12-point lead ending 44-32.
Coming into the second half of the game, the Cougs brought more energy, taking to the basket and playing strong defense. The Cougs brought great ball movement on the court, finding open players and making sure everyone was getting the ball.
The Cougs continue to hold the Redhawks while expanding the point gap, finishing with a 17-point lead. Still not giving up that lead in the fourth, the Cougs continued to drive to the hoop and rebounds on defense. In the end, WSU snatched a 22-point win with 80-58 being the final tally.
“I think coming in on a second day having played on this gym and this floor and this basket. I think that’s a good thing, I think some of our nerves are out,” head coach Kamie Ethridge said.
The Cougs advance to the next round of the tournament against the No. 8 seed University of the Pacific. Today the Cougs will face them at 12 p.m. in Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
