Cheney, Wash. - With three weeks left in the regular season, the Eastern Washington University women's basketball team returns home this week for rematches against Big Sky Conference foes Sacramento State and Portland State.
Eastern (17-8, 11-2 Big Sky) will take on Sacramento State on Thursday, Feb. 18 at 6 p.m. PST, and Portland State on Saturday, Feb. 20 at 2 p.m. PST.
Senior Hayley Hodgins is currently on pace to become Eastern's all-time NCAA Division I leading scorer at home this week. She has 1,700 points in her career, 33 points behind Brenda Souther (1983-87).
Last week, EWU suffered only its second conference loss of the season with a 72-69 finish at North Dakota, on Thursday, Feb. 11. The Eagles bounced back from the loss by finishing the road trip with a 66-57 win over Northern Colorado, on Saturday, Feb. 13.
Against UND, Eastern had the 55-51 lead at the beginning of the fourth quarter, but soon fell behind after a late game rally from the Fighting Hawks. Down the final stretch of the game, EWU traded baskets with North Dakota, resulting in four different lead changes in just 2:42 of play. The dagger came with 12 seconds left when UND stole the ball, taking away the Eagles' last chance at a tie. Hayley Hodgins led the team in scoring with 27 points on 10-of-23 shooting.
Eastern's defense stepped up in the second half against Northern Colorado, holding UNC to only five third quarter points. A strong defensive showing, and an efficient offense that shot 52.2 percent from the field, 41.7 percent from three, and 92.9 percent from the free throw line, gave EWU a nice rebound win after the previous loss. Sophomore Delaney Hodgins led the team in scoring with 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting.
Sacramento State (9-14, 6-6 Big Sky) took a loss to Eastern earlier in the season 100-83. That game featured the Eagles' best offensive performance of the season, shooting 56.2 percent from the field and 52.9 percent from three, as five different players scored in double digits. Recently CSUS earned a big win at home against Idaho, 83-62, on Saturday, Feb. 13. The Hornets have the second highest scoring offense in the country with 87.2 points per game. They are also first in the country in three pointers made, turnovers forced, and offensive rebounds, a product of their fast paced offensive scheme.
Senior Adella Randle-El leads the team in scoring 15.3 points per game on 36.4 percent shooting from the field. She also leads the team with 3.7 steals per game.
Portland State (3-20, 1-11 Big Sky) ended Eastern's 7-0 conference start in this season's first meeting in Portland, 81-79. Despite a 33 point performance from Hayley Hodgins, and a 29 point fourth quarter, the team failed to take the lead in the final seconds of the game. Overall, the team shot 37 percent from the field. PSU is currently on a five game losing streak, with its last game being 75-58 loss at the hands of Weber State on Saturday, Feb. 13. On the season the Vikings are scoring 67.2 points per game on 34.7 percent shooting from the field.
Sophomore Cici West averages a double-double a game with 10.3 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. She shoots 46.1 percent from the field.
