By Robert Marritz
It was only an exhibition game, but for the Seattle Pacific University athletic program it was a milestone.
The SPU women's basketball team's win over the University of Washington women Nov. 6 at Hec Edmundson Pavilion augurs a fine season for the scrappy Falcons, and perhaps some growing pains for the young, talent-laden Huskies.
The 75-67 final score was deceptive. The game was close all the way, with 13 lead changes. Neither team led by more than five points until the final minute.
Few could recall if little SPU - an NCAA Division II school - had ever beaten a Pac-10 Division I school before, or even if these two teams had ever met.
But the past offered no clue to the intensity on the floor of this preseason matchup.
Senior swingman Libby Magnuson had her best game as a Falcon. Her game-high 17 points, on 6-of-11 shooting - 4 or 5 of these three-pointers - led SPU. Shooting guard Jackie Hollands, a transfer from UW two years earlier, added 14 points, netting 4 of 10 from behind the arc.
UW did clamp down on junior post Kelsey Hill, SPU's top scorer last year. Hill was held to 10 points on efficient 5-of-6 shooting, and also pulled down 9 rebounds. But the Huskies, who had a significant size advantage at almost every position, still had a 39-32 rebounding edge over SPU.
Outside shooting and defense kept SPU in the game. The tenacious Falcons held the Husky women to 38-percent shooting, while scoring at a 48-percent clip themselves. SPU also shot 41 percent (9 of 22) from behind the arc, against just 17 percent (2 of 12) for UW.
UW almost made up for that disparity by generous free-throw opportunities. The Huskies shot 19 of 27 from the line, while SPU notched 10 on just 14 opportunities - and six of those came in the final seconds.
Four young players stepped up big for SPU. Sophomore guard Daesha Henderson's quickness netted 5 steals, 5 rebounds and 8 points. Soph forward Megan Hoisington guarded much taller Husky players, while adding 9 points. Freshman Madison Maloney tabbed 7 points. And redshirt freshman Melissa Reich's defense contributed much more than her 2 points.
Sisters Beth and Jessie Christensen, both seniors, didn't figure heavily in the scoring, but Beth, a senior point guard, directed the offense for most of the game. Jessie, a quick but undersized forward, at 5-feet-9-inches, was often matched up with players half a foot taller and held her own.
Top scorers for UW were 6-foot-3 junior forward Heidi McNeill, with 15 points, and 6-foot-1 freshman Katelan Redmon, an honorable-mention high school All-American, with 14.
Before the game, third-year SPU coach Julie van Beek told her team that it faced "a great opportunity to play in a national tournament type of game," and "to see if we could be intense and focused for 40 minutes."
Chants of "SPU, SPU" from Falcon fans, as the clock ticked down, were proof that her team met the challenge and "were something our team will remember for a long time.
"It was a great way to start the season," she added. "Now we must build on it."
Huskies first-year coach Tia Jackson called the game a needed wakeup call for her young, tall and talented team, and said simply, "We were outworked."
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