Written by Iain Dexter, Sports Information Intern

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The Western Oregon women's basketball team was defeated by the No. 2-ranked University of Alaska Anchorage, 77-51, in Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) play Saturday night inside the Alaska Airlines Arena.

"Anchorage is a very talented team that shares the ball and plays in your face for 40 minutes," said Head Coach Holli Howard-Carpenter. "They are a tough matchup for any team."

The Wolves (5-15, 2-10 GNAC) trailed from the beginning, as UAA took an early 19-0 lead and never relinquished it. WOU was led on the stat sheet by senior Dana Goularte and sophomore Jordan Mottershaw, who each finished with 10 points. Goularte added four rebounds, dished out five assists and added two blocks and four steals. Freshman Sami Osborne grabbed a game-high eight rebounds and put up nine points. Redshirt junior Elise Miller chipped in with seven points and a game-high six assists, along with two blocks and steals.

On the other side of the court, the Seawolves (22-1, 12-1 GNAC) continued their standout season with another strong performance. Sierra Afoa led all players with 15 points. She shot 7-for-10 and grabbed six rebounds. Megan Mullings and Jenna Buchanan each scored 14 points and added 5 rebounds.

WOU trailed 21-39 at halftime and trailed by as much as 32 in the second half. As a team, the Seawolves out-rebounded WOU 47-28. The Wolves turned the ball over 16 times, while UAA had 18 turnovers.

"Although we took care of the ball fairly well against their pressure, we just could not knock down shots," added Howard-Carpenter. "We have to put in more work outside of practice in order change that this coming week."

Western Oregon combined to shoot 21-for-61 (34.4%) for the game while the Seawolves finished 28-for-59 (47.5%). The Wolves were also held to shoot just 5-for-25 (20%) from the three-point line, and 4-for-10 (40%) from the charity stripe. UAA finished 6-for-14 (42.9%) from long range and 15-for-20 (75%) from the free-throw line.

The Wolves return to Monmouth for their following two games. They host Simon Fraser University Thursday, February 12 with tipoff at 7 p.m. (PT) in the New PE Building. They will then face Western Washington University Saturday, February 14 on Play4Kay Night.