PORTLAND, Ore. – A pair of large double-digit victories – and on the road, at that – is the kind of thing that gets people's attention.
 
In last week's season-opening West Region Challenge women's basketball tournament, the Seattle Pacific Falcons got people's attention.
 
Off to a 2-0 start with a wire-to-wire 82-52 win against Humboldt State on Friday, and an 89-43 rout of Fresno Pacific on Saturday, SPU has been named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference's Team of the Week for Nov. 9-14.
 
"The things we've tried to hang our hat on are rebounding and defense, and I think that gave us a good start," head coach Julie Heisey said. "We did what we practiced."
 
Instead of one or two individuals shining on the court, the Falcons used dominant team performances in both games at Lumberjack Arena.

 

"The fun part was that even though it wasn't perfect – no game is – everyone who came in was able to contribute," Heisey said. "If it wasn't on the first time they came in, then it was on the second time. We saw good minutes from every person, and that's nice."
 
Against host Humboldt State on Friday, Seattle Pacific looked to be in midseason form with four players in double-digit scoring – all of which were career highs. Jordan McPhee led the way with 17 points. Brianne Lasconia put up 16, Molly Grager had 14, along with eight rebounds. and Stacey Lukasiewicz scored 11.
 
The Falcons led from start to finish. They built a 14-point lead at 29-15 by the end of the first quarter against the Lumberjacks, who were voted as the No. 3 team in the California Collegiate Athletic Conference preseason coaches poll. SPU's defense limited Humboldt to 35.6 percent from the field and just 1 for 9 from 3-point range.
 
Against Fresno Pacific, the Falcons once again had four double-digit scorers. This time, it was sophomore guard Courtney Hollander setting the pace with 13 points. She also pulled down 13 rebounds for her first collegiate double-double, and dished four assists.
 
McPhee had another strong outing with 12 points and seven rebounds. Lukasiewicz scored 11 points and handed out eight assists, and Hannah Rodrigues scored 11 off the bench.
 
The Falcons used a 23-7 second quarter and a 30-11 third quarter to run away from the Sunbirds. Seattle Pacific shot 50 percent from the field and from behind the arc, and 86.7 percent from the foul line. Rebounding also was widely in SPU's favor, 49-26.
 
Another California tournament is on the schedule for this weekend, as the Falcons play in the West Region Crossover Classic at Azusa Pacific. Up first is long-time CCAA rival UC San Diego on Friday at 3:00 p.m.. Then it's a match-up against host APU on Saturday night at 7:30.