LACEY, Wash. – Senior forward Kylie Burns had 8 points and 11 rebounds but the high-scoring Alaska Anchorage offense could never get started Thursday as the Seawolves lost 56-46 to host Saint Martin's in women's basketball action at Marcus Pavilion.
The Seawolves (14-6, 7-5 GNAC) – who entered No. 4 in NCAA Div. II with 84.5 points per game – got a team-high nine points from freshman point guard Kiki Robertson, while forward KeKe Wright added eight points and seven rebounds.
The Saints (13-7, 7-4) were led by a big all-around game from forward Chelsey Haskey, who had 13 points, five rebounds, three steals, two blocks and two assists. The Great Northwest Athletic Conference's top defensive team held the Seawolves to just 29.2 percent shooting, including 1 of 16 from three-point range.
UAA led 21-18 at halftime and stretched its largest advantage to 31-25 early in the second half. Burns scored a put-back basket to make it a 35-32 lead with 12:21 left, however the Seawolves went the next six minutes without a field goal as the Saints made the deciding surge.
Angela Gelhar sank four straight free throws to stretch the home team to a 45-39 lead with 5:36 to play, and Haskey converted a traditional three-point play with 4:29 on the clock. The Seawolves would get no closer than seven the rest of the way.
The Saints swept the season series for the first time since 2004-05, along with their 85-78 win in Anchorage last month. UAA had won five straight and 11 of the past 12 meetings before this year.
UAA concludes it road trip Saturday when it faces Western Oregon in Monmouth, Ore., for a 1 p.m. AST matinee.
NOTES: The Seawolves' scoring output was their lowest since a 57-42 loss at Seattle Pacific on Jan. 29, 2010 … UAA scored only 48 points last year at SMU but still managed a 48-45 victory … Burns collected her eight career double-digit rebounding game, while moving up to 22nd on UAA's career scoring list (726 pts) and 19th in rebounds (445).