MONMOUTH, Ore. (Feb. 27) – Freshman forward Ashlyn Rean had 26 points, 10 rebounds and five steals to help the Alaska Anchorage women's basketball team claim the outright Great Northwest Athletic Conference title Thursday with an 89-66 victory over Western Oregon at the New P.E. Building.

Ranked No. 15 in both NCAA Div. II national polls, the Seawolves (25-3, 16-1 GNAC) also got 15 points from senior guard Jazzpher Evans as they stretched their win streak to eight, securing the No. 1 seed for the Mar. 6-8 GNAC Championships in Lacey, Wash.

The Wolves (8-17, 4-13) were led by 17 points from Enid Vaifanua and 13 points from Bella  Pedrojetti, who kept their team within striking distance until late in the third quarter.

"Western Oregon played a very good game and made some tough shots early," said UAA head coach Ryan McCarthy, whose program celebrated its ninth GNAC regular-season title and seventh under his leadership. "But we did a good job of weathering the storm and staying aggressive offensively. It wasn't our most disciplined effort, but will be good to learn from as we prepare for Saturday."

Looking to avenge the worst defeat in GNAC history (108-41) in their Dec. 7 meeting in Anchorage, Western Oregon played inspired throughout the first half, earning an 18-17 lead after the first quarter. With UAA leading just 29-28 with four minutes left in the half, junior forward Hedda Koehne made two free throws and swished a hook shot to stretch it to a multi-possession affair.

The Seawolves led 42-35 and halftime and pushed it to double figures on big three-pointers by Evans and Elaina Mack early in the third, but still couldn't pull away, watching Ciona Wells draw the hosts within 58-51 on a trey at the 2:23 mark.

Koehne provided the offensive spark again, nailing a midrange jumper to begin a clinching 9-0 surge over the final 2:10 of the quarter. Rean scored on a jumper with 1:08 left, and made a putback just before the buzzer.

UAA extended the run to 16 straight points to begin the fourth quarter, with senior center Tori Hollingshead scoring most of her 13 points to help pull away.

Rean made a UAA season-high 12 field goals on 15 attempts and recorded her fourth double-double, along with a pair of blocked shots. The New Zealander became just the third Seawolf freshman to score at least 25 points in a game, alongside all-time greats Robin Graul (1985-86) and Rebecca Kielpinski (three times in 2005-06). She also became the sixth UAA freshman to surpass 300 points.

Senior point guard Emilia Long finished with eight points, six rebounds and six assists, while junior forward Jaisa Gamble had six points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals to keep the Seawolves afloat early.

Mack finished with nine points as all eight Seawolves scored at least five.

The Seawolves conclude the regular season Saturday at 2 p.m. AST when they face Saint Martin's in Lacey, Wash. Find live video and stats links at GoSeawolves.com.

NOTES: UAA will play the winner of the No. 4 vs. No. 5 seed in the GNAC Tournament semifinals on Mar. 7 in Lacey … the Seawolves will be seeking their seventh GNAC Tournament title … UAA has reached 25 victories for the 10th time in program history and the seventh time under McCarthy.

SEAWOLF RECORD BOOK
Points in a Game, Freshman
31, Rebecca Kielpinski vs Central Washington, 2/11/06
30, Rebecca Kielpinski at Northwest Nazarene, 1/26/06
28, Robin Graul vs Iona, Mar. 1, 1986
27, Rebecca Kielpinski vs San Diego Christian, 11/27/05
26, Ashlyn Rean at Western Oregon, 2/27/25