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USF Women Fall 57-37 at WCC Champion Gonzaga
Feb. 24, 2007
(Spokane) - USF women's basketball closed out the 2006-07 regular season with a 57-37 defeat at Gonzaga Saturday afternoon in West Coast Conference action at the McCarthey Center. The Dons (9-20, 3-11 WCC) offensive woes continued and the Bulldogs (21-9, 13-1 WCC) capitalized, limiting USF to its lowest scoring output of the season.
As the No. 7 seed for the 2007 WCC Tournament, San Francisco will take on No. 2 seed San Diego Thursday, March 1 in a game scheduled for a noon tip at the Chiles Center on the University of Portland campus. The Toreros swept the season series against the Dons dispatching USF 52-45 January 7 in the league opener for both teams at the Jenny Craig Pavilion and then captured a 66-60 win at War Memorial February 3. The two teams have met just once before in the conference showcase where USD captured a 66-54 victory in 2003.
San Francisco connected on a chilly .320 (16-50) from the field, while Gonzaga hit .390 (23-59) from the floor, including a .462 (12-26) rate in the second period. The Dons held a 41-32 rebound advantage, but committed 26 costly turnovers.
Junior guard Dominique Carter scored a team-high 12 points and pulled down eight rebounds in 35 minutes. Spokane native freshman Heidi Heintz added six points and seven rebounds in her homecoming.
It was all Gonzaga in the opening period as they built a 17-2 lead by 11:20 mark and led 27-11 with 5:04 left in the half before settling for a 27-15 halftime lead. The 15 points for the Dons were their lowest output in a half all season. San Francisco shot .304 (7-23) from the field, while Gonzaga was not much better, hitting at a .333 (11-33) clip. The Dons committed 13 turnovers in the first half compared to two for the Bulldogs who scored 12 points off USF's miscues.
USF could not fight back in the second half, trailing wire-to-wire for the first time in league play this season.
Senior forward Stephanie Hawk turned in a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double performance for the Bulldogs who completed their third consecutive WCC Championship in front of 1,906 fans. Freshman forward Heather Bowman added 12 points and seven boards, while senior guard Katy Ridenour chipped in 11 points.
