ANCHORAGE – Rebecca Kielpinski had 19 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks to help lift the Alaska Anchorage women's basketball team to a 63-60 overtime win over 23rd-ranked Western Washington on Saturday, snapping the Vikings' 22-game Great Northwest Athletic Conference winning streak.
Jayci Stone also had a double-double for the Seawolves (14-1, 3-1 GNAC), while Mari Callahan scored eight points and snagged a career-high nine rebounds. The Vikings (10-4, 3-1) got 15 points and four blocks from forward Krystal Robinson and 10 rebounds off the bench from Willow Cabe.
Western Washington took a 55-53 lead with 23 seconds left in regulation when India Soo knocked down a three-pointer, but the Seawolves tied it on two pressure free throws by Kielpinski (8-16 FG, 3-4 FT) with 10 seconds to play.
After failed possessions by both teams led to the extra session, Stone converted a layup off the opening tip to give the Seawolves a permanent advantage.
In fact, Stone's basket was the only field goal of overtime as UAA held the Vikings to 0-for-7 shooting. For the game, the Vikings managed just 27.8 percent from the field, including 20 percent (5-25) from long range, to offset their impressive five-turnover performance.
The Seawolves were perfect on six free throws in overtime before Callahan opened the door by missing two charities with 10 seconds left. MacKenzie Flynn had to tie, but her attempt bounced off and the rebound bounced out of bounds as the clock expired.
Stone finished with 10 points and a career-high 11 rebounds, while guards Tristan Burnett and Keyona Brooks scored eight points each. Small forward Jennifer Salazar had just seven points on 2-of-10 shooting, but the junior from Texas dished a career-high six assists. Despite forcing so few turnovers, UAA's defensive effort was superb, holding the Vikings 27.8 percent shooting from the field, a season-low for a Seawolf opponent.
The loss was the first for WWU in a regular-season GNAC game since late in the 2004-05 season.
UAA shot 39 percent and outrebounded the Vikings 48-43 to secure its 11th straight home victory. The win also clinched UAA's first winning record season 1999-00 and was just the second for the Seawolves against WWU in 11 all-time GNAC meetings. WWU leads the all-time series now 16-3.
The Seawolves next hit the road for three straight GNAC games, beginning Jan. 18 at Central Washington (4:30 p.m. AST).
