Trevor Jasinsky scored a career-high 32 points to lead #14 WWU to a 84-78 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills. PHOTO: WWU Athletics
WWU Hoops: Men win Opener on the Road; Women Fall at Carver
November 10, 2018
JASINSKY’S CAREER NIGHT LEADS VIKINGS TO
SEASON-OPENING WIN
LA JOLLA, Calif. – Western Washington University junior forward Trevor Jasinsky scored a career-high 32 points to lead the No. 14 nationally-ranked Vikings to a season-opening 84-78 victory over Cal State Dominguez Hills in the CCAA/GNAC Challenge in RIMAC Arena.
Jasinsky (Camas, WA) led three Vikings in double-figure scoring, with redshirt junior guard Micah Winn (Los Angeles, CA/Cerritos College) adding 12 points and junior forward Cameron Retherford (Portland, OR/Portland CC) contributing 11 points. Jasinsky scored 10 of WWU’s final 12 points in the game to help secure the season-opening victory.
“It was a good first game for our new team,” said WWU head coach Tony Dominguez. “Cal State Dominguez Hills is a very talented team and had a new-look team as well. Our tempo was great until the 10-minute mark of the second half and they did a nice job of rallying back. I liked how our guys responded the last three minutes of the game.”
Senior guard Siaan Rojas (Concord, CA/Santa Rosa JC) just missed a double-double with 9 points and grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds. Eight different Vikings scored points, with 10 players seeing action.
“Trevor Jasinsky was outstanding for us offensively and Siaan did a great job on the boards,” added Dominguez. “Overall it was a good team effort. Tomorrow’s game will be tough vs. UC San Diego, but I like our guys and we are ready for the challenge.”
The Vikings took a 46-37 lead into halftime, and led by as many as 18 points at 30-12 at the 9:10 mark midway through the half. WWU used a 19-5 run to grow the lead to 18 points, but the Toros answered going on a 16-2 run of their own closing to within four points at 32-28. Jasinsky led the Vikings with 10 first-half points on 3-for-7 shooting, with sophomore forward Luke Lovelady (Tacoma, WA/Life Christian/Point Loma) and redshirt junior guard Elijah Cotton-Welch (Tacoma, WA/Wilson/Lower Columbia) Cotton-Welch each contributing 7 points.
WWU led by as many as 12 points in the second half, last when Jasinsky hit a pair of free throws at the 13:39 mark to give the Vikings a 66-54 lead. The Vikings led 74-63 after two more Jasinsky free throws at the 9:17 mark, but CSUDH went on a 10-0 run to pull to within one point at 74-73 with 4:59 remaining in the contest.
Jasinsky stopped the run with a jumper in the paint and at the 3:48 mark, and hit a clutch fadeaway jumper at the 1:51 mark to give the Vikings a four-point lead at 80-76. Senior Tyler Payne (Long Beach, CA/Cerritos College) and Jasinsky went 4-for-4 down the free throw line to secure the six-point victory.
Michael Chavers led Dominguez Hills with 23 points on 9-for-15 shooting, with Mikey Hatfield adding 10 points and 4 rebounds in 21 minutes.
The Vikings (1-0) take on tournament host and No. 24-ranked UC San Diego Saturday night at 7:30 pm in the final game of the CCAA/GNAC Challenge. The game will stream live via ucsdtritons.tv.
VIKINGS FALL IN SEASON OPENER 76-66 TO HUMBOLDT STATE
BELLINGHAM, Wash – Western Washington University junior center Anna Schwecke recorded a 17-point, 12-rebound double-double, but it was not enough as the Vikings dropped their 2018-19 season opener 76-66 to Humboldt State Friday night on WECU Court in Carver Gym.
The Vikings are hosting the West Region Crossover Classic, with Humboldt State, Fresno Pacific and Seattle Pacific playing in the four-team, two-day tournament in Bellingham. Fresno Pacific defeated Seattle Pacific 80-69 in the first game on Friday, led by 32 points from FPU sophomore guard Jessica Malazarte.
WWU fell behind 20-14 in the first quarter, and couldn’t catch up to Humboldt State the rest of the way. The Vikings trailed 37-22 at the half and were able to close the gap to 6 points late in the fourth quarter, but could not complete the comeback.
Schwecke (Evergreen, CO/Clear Creek/Colorado-Colorado Springs) recorded her fifth career double-double, shooting 5-for-10 from the field and was 7-for-7 from the free-throw line.
Junior guard Dani Iwami (Seal Beach, CA/Los Alamitos/Hawai'i Pacific) was held scoreless in the first half on 0-for-7 shooting, but caught fire in the second half to score all 17 of her points. She fueled the fourth-quarter comeback attempt scoring 13 points in the final 10 minute of the contest on 5-for-11 shooting. Overall, the preseason All-GNAC selection was 6-for-22 from the field and 3-for-13 on her 3-pointer attempts.
Junior guard Lexie Bland (Ellensburg, WA) added 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting and was 1-for-3 from 3-point range.
The Vikings shot 35.3% from the field (24-for-68), were 4-for-21 from 3-point range (19.0%) and shot 82.4% from the free throw line (14-for-17).
Humboldt State was led by a game-high 22 points from junior Alexia Thrower on 8-for-16 shooting. The Las Vegas native and junior college transfer from Grays Harbor College in Aberdeen also had 10 rebounds to record the double-double.
The Vikings close out the opening weekend of the 2018-19 season facing Fresno Pacific (1-0) Saturday night at 7:30 pm in the final game of the West Region Crossover Classic. Seattle Pacific and Humboldt State tip-off at 5 pm in the first game on Saturday, with both games played on WECU Court in Carver Gym.
