ANCHORAGE – Senior guard
Safiyyah Yasin scored 19 points and junior center
Tennae Voliva delivered 14 points and 11 rebounds Friday to lift No. 11 Alaska Anchorage to an 86-57 women's basketball victory over Wisconsin-Parkside at the Alaska Airlines Center.
The Seawolves (4-0) also got 11 points, five assists and two steals from senior point guard
Yazmeen Goo as they outshot the visitors .491 to .304 in the first-ever meeting between the two programs.
The Rangers (2-3) were led by 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from starting guard Alisha Murphy, but the rest of her teammates combined to shoot 13 of 50 from the floor and struggled with foul trouble throughout the contest.
"We are still making some early-season mistakes, but overall I was pleased with our performance tonight," said UAA head coach
Ryan McCarthy, whose team was averaging 100 points through its first three games. "Our veterans continued to show leadership and play with poise, and that is already rubbing off on our newcomers, who will continue to improve as they become more comfortable in the system."
Parkside – from the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference – grabbed an early 9-7 lead on a three-pointer by Courtney Schoenbeck, but junior forward
Lauren Johnson scored inside to begin a 9-0 UAA run, and the hosts would not trail again.
The Seawolves got back-to-back three-pointers from sophomore guard
Nicole Pinckney to start the second quarter as the former Chugiak star made her first four shots from long range. Her fourth trey gave UAA an 32-20 edge, stretching it to double digits for good.
Leading 43-31 with 3:16 left before the half, the Seawolves pulled away with 12 straight points, getting two assists and a basket from junior guard
Stephanie Jackson in the surge.
UAA led 55-33 at halftime and kept Parkside at bay throughout the second 20 minutes, allowing the visitors no closer than 17 points on three occasions.
Yasin shot 6 of 12 from the floor and 5 of 7 at the foul stripe, while dishing four assists. The Preseason All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference selection has scored in double figures all four games thus far, shooting 50 percent from long range in the process.
Voliva shot 5 of 7 from the field and made all three of her free throws as the former East Anchorage High School star posted her third double-double in four games, along with three assists and two blocks. Goo shot 3 of 5 from the field and committed just one turnover, while making two steals.
Pinckney finished with 13 points, and junior guard
Kedranea' Addison added nine points, five rebounds and two assists in 16 minutes off the bench. Sophomore forward
Kimani Fernandez returned from a two-game absence to due injury and earned the starting assignment, collecting six points on 3-of-3 shooting and four rebounds.
The Seawolves face their biggest challenge of the young season Saturday when they play No. 23 Westminster (5-0) at 3:15 p.m. at the Alaska Airlines Center. For tickets, visit AlaskaAirlinesCenter.com.