Women's Basketball Game Notes
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - FEBRUARY 18, 2004
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
Game No. 25 - vs. University of PortlandSaturday, Feb. 21; 7 p.m.Chiles Center (5,000) - Portland, Ore.
GONZAGA UNIVERSITY BULLDOGS (14-10; 7-4 West Coast Conference)F - 13 Ashley Burke, 6-1, Jr., North Vancouver, BC (14.2 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 1.8 apg)F - 30 Ashley Anderson, 6-0, So., Enterprise, OR (11.8 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 1.2 apg)F - 44 Anne Bailey, 6-0, So., Snohomish, WA (6.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 1.2 apg)G - 10 Shannon Mathews, 5-6, Jr., Riverside, CA (9.4 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 4.5 apg)G - 32 Raeanna Jewell, 5-7, Jr., Veradale, WA (9.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.4 apg)HEAD COACH: Kelly Graves (University of New Mexico, 1988)GONZAGA RECORD: 46-62 (4th year) CAREER RECORD: 114-88 (7th year)
UNIVERSITY OF PORTLAND (11-13; 6-5 West Coast Conference)F - 45 Khalila O'Rielly-Williams, 6-0, Sr., Seattle, WA (17.0 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 1.0 apg)C - 23 Ashlee Orndorff, 6-2, Jr., Hawthorne, NV (11.7 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 1.5 apg)G - 11 Cecily O'Rielly-Williams, 5-11, Jr., Seattle, WA (6.5 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 1.1 apg)G - 14 Whitney Grant, 5-6, So., Medford, OR (6.3 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 3.1 apg)G - 25 Hanna Seltzer, 5-8, Jr., Ashland, OR (7.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 3.9 apg)HEAD COACH: Jim Sollars (Seattle Pacific, 1966)UP RECORD: 262-250 (18th year) CAREER RECORD: 439-332 (28th year)
THIS WEEK: With the last game played in The Kennel behind them, the Bulldogs of the Gonzaga University women's basketball team set their sights on the road ahead. The Bulldogs play only one game this week, traveling to West Coast Conference neighbor University of Portland on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. Gonzaga currently sits in third place in the WCC with a 7-4 record, just ahead of the Pilots in fourth place with a 6-5 WCC record. This game is critical for the Bulldogs with only three games left in the season before the WCC Championships on March 4-8 in Santa Clara, Calif. Gonzaga will end their regular season on the road by traveling to Santa Clara University on Thursday, Feb. 26 and University of San Diego on Feb. 28.
COVERING UP THE STREAKS: The loss for the Gonzaga University women's basketball team on Feb. 15 not only ended the team's 10 game win streak in The Kennel, but the Bulldogs didn't do something that they had done in 225 straight games: score a 3-pointer. The lack of points from downtown was the first game since Feb. 17, 1996 that Gonzaga didn't hit a three. The Bulldogs weren't the only team on the floor having trouble behind the arc as the University of San Francisco failed to make a 3-pointer as well, leaving the game completely empty despite six attempts from Gonzaga and 10 attempts for the Dons.
LAST TIME OUT: Last weekend, sophomore Ashley Anderson and junior Raeanna Jewell each scored 16 points for the Gonzaga University women's basketball team, but the Bulldogs were overpowered by Loyola Marymount University as the Lions defeated Gonzaga, 70-58, on Thursday evening. The loss marked Gonzaga's second West Coast Conference loss, granting sole possession of first place to LMU. Then, Pepperdine University turned the tables on the Gonzaga as the Waves defeated the Bulldogs, 73-62, on Saturday afternoon. The loss for Gonzaga brought the Bulldogs into second place in the West Coast Conference, tied with Pepperdine with 6-3 conference records. The two losses give Gonzaga a three game losing streak on the road and mark only the second time this season that the Bulldogs have lost both games of the weekend.
HANDY ANDY: Sophomore Ashley Anderson has stepped up for the Gonzaga University women's basketball team, leading the Bulldogs in points for three of the previous four games. Anderson matched junior Raeanna Jewell for the team high of 16 points at Loyola Marymount University (2/5/04). The Enterprise, Ore., native then grabbed another 16 points last weekend over Saint Mary's College. Anderson owned the iron again with a team high 18 points over University of San Francisco on Sunday, Feb. 15. Anderson currently averages 11.8 points for Gonzaga and leads the team with a 6.1 rebounds per game average. She currently holds 99 defensive rebounds alone, passing her 2003 season record of 80 defensive boards.
AND THE CROWD GOES WILD: The Bulldogs of Gonzaga University women's basketball are increasing in popularity among the Spokane, Wash., residents as they marked a new record in attendance with 3,029 fans at the University of San Francisco game on Sunday, Feb. 15. Gonzaga has steadily drawn more fans, averaging 400 more people in attendance this season than last season. The Bulldogs boast an average of 1,281 fans over the 13 home games of the season, while last year Gonzaga drew an average of 881 over the 15 games in The Kennel.
GONZAGA IS BOARD STIFF: Rebounding seems to be the determining factor for the Gonzaga University women's basketball team in whether the game will end in a win or a loss. Over the past eight games, the Bulldogs find themselves in a dangerous trend that being outrebounded by their opponent results in a loss for Gonzaga. The Bulldogs are 4-4 when they match or surpass their opponents in rebounds with victories over University of Portland (40-40 rebounds), Santa Clara University (36-34), University of San Diego (44-33) and Saint Mary's College (47-33).
BREAKING EVEN: West Coast Conference play has shifted for the Gonzaga University women's basketball team from the Bulldogs' 6-1 start to the recent past of 1-3 over the last four games. Gonzaga finds itself in a curious position as the squad has gone 1-1 against all four opponents that they have played twice this season. The Bulldogs still have University of Portland, Santa Clara University and University of San Diego on their checklist this season for a second matchup, but Gonzaga has already claimed victory against each of these teams in their first meetings. The Bulldogs need a win over Portland to break the run and end up ahead at the end of the season.
SCOUTING THE PILOTS: The University of Portland women's basketball team will play host to Gonzaga University as the Bulldogs begin their last road trip of the season against the Pilots on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. Portland is currently 11-13 overall, 6-5 in the West Coast Conference with two straight wins against University of San Francisco and Saint Mary's College. The Pilots are 5-1 in conference play at home. Portland looks to senior forward Khalila O'Rielly-Williams to lead the team. O'Rielly-Williams was named WCC Player of the Week for the second time this season for the week of Feb. 17 after scoring 27 points against USF and 19 points against Saint Mary's and is only the second player in Portland history to score 1,500 points and 700 rebounds.
ONE-ON-ONE WITH PORTLAND: Gonzaga University women's basketball will take on the University of Portland in an effort to break its three game losing streak on the road. The Bulldogs have won the last four outing against the Pilots, including two previous meetings at Portland's home court. In the last game in The Kennel, four players hit double figures for Gonzaga and took the early lead with an 11-2 run to start the game. Ashley Burke took care of the first five points for the Bulldogs with two layups and a free throw. Portland brought the game back within one at 17-16 with 6:56 on the clock, but Anne Bailey added two layups and a three to go back ahead by eight points with five minutes remaining. The Bulldogs took off, garnering as much as a 12-point lead to hold the advantage over the Pilots, 30-18 at the half. The second half remained in Gonzaga's control, leading by as many as 19 points over Portland with 6:23 to go in the game. The Pilots fought back with an attempt to narrow the margin, with eight points as the closest they were able to get. The Bulldogs held tough despite the attempt and ended with the final nine-point victory, 64-55.
AHEAD OF THE GAME: Despite the recent losses that plague the Gonzaga University women's basketball team, the Bulldogs remain ahead of last season's 9-5 West Coast Conference finish, the best since the 1993-94 season. After 11 games this season, Gonzaga holds a 7-4 conference record with a 6-1 record at home. During the 2002-03 season, the Bulldogs went 6-5 in the first 11 games with a 4-1 home record and ended the year tied for second place in the WCC.
DOUBLIN' UP: Junior Raeanna Jewell became the third Bulldog for the Gonzaga University women's basketball team to earn a double-double this season with her 17 points, 10 rebounds performance against Saint Mary's College on Feb. 12. Jewell joins sophomore Ashley Anderson, who hit her 15 points, 14 rebounds double-double on Dec. 12, 2003 against Portland State University. Junior Shannon Mathews rounds out the club as she earned a points-assists double-double with 10 points and 10 assists against UC Riverside
BURKE IS IN THE BOOKS: Junior Ashley Burke is making sure that her name will remain in the Gonzaga University women's basketball record book claiming her position on four all-time leaders lists. Burke has moved up to eighth place in career points (1,063), and is only the ninth woman in Bulldog history to hit 1,000 points. Burke also joined the top ten with 408 field goals made (No. 8) and holds steady in second place with a .500 career field goal percentage. The North Vancouver, BC, native recently joined the all-time leaders in free throws made, tied at ninth place with 223 made. Burke remains on pace to add her name to the individual season record categories also withe a .548 field goal percentage this season, which would put her in second place.
ASHLEY + ASHLEY = DOUBLE TROUBLE: Junior Ashley Burke and sophomore Ashley Anderson are at it again as a dangerous duo for the Gonzaga University women's basketball team. The pair account for nearly a third (30.2 percent) of the team's rebounds, and 40.3 percent of the team's scored points. Burke and Anderson remain the only two on the squad to have started all 24 games of the season, averaging 14.2 and 11.8 points per game, respectively.
FRESH ON THE FLOOR: The Gonzaga University women's basketball team's freshmen class is the dynamic duo of Stephanie Hawk and Katy Ridenour. Ridenour, a 5-11 guard from Post Falls, Idaho, has been a critical player off the bench for the Bulldogs, playing in all 23 games so far this season. Ridenour averages 3.0 points per game, with 1.6 rebounds per game. Ridenour notched five steals against West Coast Conference foe University of San Diego, something only four other players have done in a game. Hawk, a 6-3 forward from Ontario, OR, also serves up height off the bench for Gonzaga. As the second tallest woman on the team, Hawk looks make an impact on the Bulldogs' inside game averaging 2.3 points per game and 1.5 rebounds per game.
LIVE ON THE INTERNET: All Gonzaga University home matches as well as all West Coast Conference road matches will be available via Gametracker on the internet at http://www.gozags.com. Some non-conference matches may also be available. Check the Gonzaga web site for all Gametracker links.
