SEATTLE – A slow offensive start doomed the Western Oregon women's basketball team on Saturday as they fell 73-51 to the Seattle Pacific Falcons at Brougham Pavilion.
 
Scoring just 15 points in the first half, Western Oregon (5-10, 2-6 GNAC) relied heavily on 3-point shooting early on, taking 10 3-pointers in the first quarter alone of their 17 total shots. Seattle Pacific (5-11, 3-5 GNAC) followed suit, triggering nine tries from the perimeter and hitting four to take an 18-9 lead at the end of the first quarter. They would not trail in the game.

"SPU outplayed us on both sides of the ball, especially in the first half," said Western Oregon head coach Holli Howard-Carpenter. "Our defensive execution was unacceptable and that's something we have to be able to hang our hats on when shots aren't falling."
 
The Wolves took exceptionally good care of the basketball Saturday night, turning it over just eight times; a season-low. The total included only three turnovers in the second half while forcing 14 in the game.
 
Keyonna Jones led Western with 15 points, three assists and a rebound in her 29 minutes of work, shooting 5-for-8 from the field. Freshman Meadow Aragon recorded all three of her game-high three blocks in the second half in 20 minutes off the bench.
 
For the Falcons, it was a balanced attack of four players hitting double figures in scoring that led to the win, including 29 bench points. Abril Rexach Roure and Bayley Brennan each scored 11 as a reserve for SPU.
 
After scoring just 15 points in the first half and trailing by 22, WOU bounced back with a solid second half of play, scoring 36 points after the break and shooting 44.8 percent from the field to play an even second half with Seattle Pacific.
 
Ashlynn Burgess registered a double-double for the Falcons, scoring 12 points and pulling down 14 rebounds in the start. It was her fourth double-double of the season.

"We have to be ready from the tip and not take so long to get going," added Howard-Carpenter. "That's something we have to figure out as a team in this next week."

Tresai McCarver (nine points), Cali McClave (eight points) and Shariah Green (seven points) followed Jones' game-high 15 points for the Wolves in scoring.
 
Next up, Western Oregon returns home to host the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks Thursday, Jan. 23, and the Central Washington Wildcats Saturday, Jan. 25, at NPE Gym. The games will tip at 5:15 p.m. and 2 p.m. PST, respectively.