SEATTLE, Wash. ? Powered by big games from Tamar Gruwell and Rebecca Kielpinski, the Alaska Anchorage women's basketball is headed back to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight for the second straight season after knocking off host and top-seeded Seattle Pacific, 54-43, in the West Regional final at Brougham Pavilion on Monday night.
The nationally 2nd-ranked Seawolves (30-3) beat the 5th-ranked Falcons (23-5) on their home court for the second straight season in the regional-title tilt as Gruwell scored a career-high 17 points and Kielpinski ? the regional tourney MVP ? added nine points, eight rebounds, three blocks and a pair of assists.
With Monday's victory, UAA advances to the Elite Eight in San Antonio, where it will meet unranked Clayton State of Georgia in a national quarterfinal game March 24.
“I'm really proud of our kids,” said third-year UAA head coach Tim Moser. “They really took what we wrote down on the chalkboard and brought it to life on the court defensively tonight.
“When I took this job three years ago, SPU and Western Washington were the standard. To come in here and beat them (SPU) twice on their court, it's an unbelievable thing about our kids and our program right now.”
Revenge was on the minds of both teams before the showdown, as the Great Northwest Athletic Conference co-champions both had something to prove to one another. For SPU, it was trying to erase the memory of last year's 50-44 loss to UAA in the regional final, while the Seawolves were playing the team that snapped their 22-game winning streak and 4-week run at No. 1 here last month with a 54-42 decision.
Monday's game was predictably low-scoring, with the nation's best defensive team (48.0 ppg, .313 opponent FG%) holding the Falcons to just 21.2 percent shooting and forcing 24 turnovers. In fact, the Seawolf defense allowed just 4-of-26 shooting for SPU inside the three-point arc, while holding Falcons all-conference senior center Kelsey Hill to just two points.
Senior guard Kelsey Burns was the only Falcon in double figures with 15 points (3-4 3FG), while guard Daesha Henderson added nine points in the loss ? SPU's first in 13 home games this year.
After a back-and-forth first few minutes, the Falcons took a 17-12 advantage on a Burns three-pointer at the 5:34 mark. But UAA's offense caught fire for the next few minutes, going on a 15-5 run to close out the period, including a pair of three-pointers from senior guard Elisha Harris (8 pts, 3-6 FG).
The Seawolves then held the Falcons without a field goal for the opening five minutes of the second half, building a 40-23 advantage on consecutive baskets by senior forward Dasha Basova (6 pts, 3 reb).
SPU would not go down easily on its home court, however, battling back with an 8-0 run to cut it to single digits. The Falcons sliced their deficit to seven points on four occasions but could get no closer. Gruwell knocked down a pair of free throws with 39 seconds left for a 52-43 lead, and the Seawolves went on to celebrate from there.
Gruwell, a 5-8 guard from Fairfield, Calif., shot 5 of 6 from the field ? including 3 of 3 on three-pointers ? and 4 of 6 from the charity stripe, adding a career-high-tying four steals as well.
She was named to the All-Tournament Team, along with Kielpinski.
“It's awesome,” said Gruwell after the victory. “Words can't really describe it right now. It's just starting to sink in.
“We just brought it to another level, really. We knew that if we came out and played as hard as we could that the outcome would be good no matter what.”
UAA was outrebounded 41-38, but offset that statistic with a 24-6 advantage in points in the paint. The Seawolves also held SPU to just two second-chance points in the second half after the Falcons connected for nine second-chance points in the opening 20 minutes.
The Seawolves' defensive effort Monday marked the 28th time holding an opponent under 40 percent shooting, and was the 20th time UAA has allowed fewer than 50 points this year.
UAA will enter the Elite Eight as the highest remaining nationally ranked team and with the most victories in Division II. No. 1 Northern Kentucky, the defending national champion, was knocked off in the second round Saturday.
Monday's victory tied last year's 30-5 club for the most victories in school history as well.
Visit GoSeawolves.com for complete Elite Eight details as the week progresses.
