A great streak does not last forever.
After four straight wins and a holiday break, Seattle Pacific women’s basketball returned to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference on Saturday, Jan. 4, and lost 97-57 to the Montana State University Billings Yellowjackets.
Seattle Pacific previously defeated Stanislaus State University, Pacific Lutheran University, Westminster University and Metropolitan State University of Denver before the holiday break.
Redshirt-freshman guard Julia Lavigne scored a career-high 16 points against the Yellowjackets. Fifth-year guard Hunter Beirne and sophomore guard Layne Kearns chipped in 15 and 10 points respectively.
The Yellowjackets led 8-4 three minutes into the first quarter, sending Seattle Pacific into an early deficit. Montana State Billings created a 12-point gap six minutes in, but the Falcons found enough drive to return to a single-digit margin going into the second quarter.
Seattle Pacific missed its first four shots of the second quarter, leaving room for MSU Billings to balloon their lead back into double digits. The Falcons closed in 30-20 and later 32-22 thanks to layups from Lavigne and Beirne, but the Yellowjackets’ 8-2 run in the half’s last three minutes secured a 44-29 lead.
Montana State Billings entered the third quarter hot, scoring the first nine points to reach 53-29. Seattle Pacific had its best quarter in the paint, shooting 6-14, but still trailed 74-43 entering the fourth quarter. The Falcons made a great effort, forcing two turnovers, nabbing two steals and finding two fastbreaks, but could not avoid defeat once the whistle blew.
The Falcons are now 0-3 in the GNAC, ranking eighth, and 6-10 overall, ranking ninth. Their next game is against Saint Martin’s University at Royal Brougham Pavilion on Thursday, Jan. 9, at 5:15 p.m.
