CHENEY, Wash. — The first month of 2025 comes to a close this week and Eastern Washington athletics competition is ramping up. Women's basketball hosts kids day on Thursday with local schools attending to add to the team's home court advantage. They'll play another game at Reese Court on Saturday. Men's basketball is back on the road for two games, Thursday and Saturday as well. Track and Field continues to move through its indoor season with another quick road trip up to Spokane. Men's tennis heads to Boise for two matches, before returning home on Sunday for its third match of the week. Women's tennis makes the trip down south to Moscow for a neutral site match.
Women's Basketball - vs. Idaho State (Thursday, Jan. 30 at 11 a.m. Pacific Time), vs. Weber State (Saturday, Feb. 1 at 2 p.m.) - Get Tickets
Eastern Washington enjoys two games at Reese Court this week, starting with the first matchup of the season against Idaho State on Thursday. The game will be Kids Day as the Eagles host elementary and middle school kids from the Cheney and Spokane school districts. Eastern then hosts Weber State on Saturday afternoon, also the first meeting this season between the teams. Both games can be streamed live on ESPN+.
EWU had two road games last week, facing Northern Arizona in Flagstaff and Northern Colorado in Greeley. Eastern battled tough against the Lumberjacks, but could not hold up against the experienced team, falling 75-63. The Eagles then faced the Bears,
coming up short, 66-57, to go 0-2 on the week.
EWU's record sits at 2-5 in the Big Sky and 6-14 overall.
Kourtney Grossman's freshman season continues to get better, as the Billings, Mont. native is developing into a force for the Eagles in conference play. Grossman leads the team with 10.0 rebounds per game and is second with 9.9 points per game. In eight Big Sky games, Grossman is averaging 13.0 points and 13.9 rebounds per contest. She has recorded double doubles in five-straight games and seven of the last nine.
With Grossman leading the effort, Eastern continues to be one of the top rebounding teams in the conference. They rank third with 41.3 total rebounds per game and are second with 13.2 offensive rebounds per game. EWU averages 28.1 defensive rebounds per game to rank third and carries a plus-4.4 rebounding margin to rank second.
Peyton Howard is the rock of the Eagle offense, averaging 13.6 points per game this season to lead the team and rank fifth in the conference. Howard has scored in double figures in 16 games this season.
Men's Basketball – at Idaho State (Thursday, January 30 at 6 p.m. Pacific Time), at Weber State (Saturday, February 1 at 12 p.m. Pacific Time)
Eastern will look to snap a four-game losing streak as they hit the road for two critical matchups. The Eagles will face Idaho State on January 30 at 6 p.m. and Weber State on February 1 at 12 p.m., hoping to secure their first win in nearly a month.
Andrew Cook continues to shine in the Big Sky Conference. He leads the conference in free throw percentage with an impressive 88.4%. Additionally, Cook ranks third in steals, averaging 1.72 per game. His teammate, Nic McClain, is second in steals, with 2.29 per game, and also ranks fourth in assists, averaging 4.06 per game.
Over the past weekend, Eastern dropped games to Northern Arizona and conference leader Northern Colorado. Against Northern Arizona, Mason Williams helped the Eagles jump to an early lead, finishing with 18 points. However, despite shooting 52% in the first half and holding a 33-30 lead at the break, Eastern couldn't maintain their momentum. Turnovers, fouls, and rebounding issues in the second half allowed Northern Arizona to take control, and despite Williams' late heroics, the Eagles fell 70-61.
In their contest against Northern Colorado, Eastern shot 47.9% from the field but still came up short, losing 67-62. McClain led the team with 16 points, and the Eagles held a narrow 29-27 advantage at halftime. However, turnovers and free throw difficulties allowed Northern Colorado to regain the lead in the second half. Williams hit a clutch three-pointer to put the Eagles ahead late, but costly mistakes in the final minutes sealed their defeat.
Despite the recent setbacks, there were some positive takeaways for Eastern, particularly in their rebounding and shooting efficiency. Head coach Dan Monson acknowledged the team's resilience but emphasized that the losses were ultimately a result of Northern Colorado executing better in the critical moments of the game.
Track and Field – Inland Northwest Invitational at The Podium hosted by Whitworth University (Saturday, February 1, All Day)
The Eastern squad with head back to The Podium for the third time this season for the Inland Northwest Invitational on Saturday, February 1 hosted by Whitworth.
This past weekend two more records went down. Kimberly Smith took over the top spot All-time in the long jump with a leap of 6.25m, earning her the Big Sky Female Field Athlete of the Week honor. Owen Higgins set a new school record in the 1000m, clocking in at 2:26.38 and surpassing the previous record held by Chris Violette since 1986.
The team also saw impressive results in other events, including a solid fifth-place finish in the pentathlon by Ella Seelhoff, and strong performances in the men's 200m with Daniel Gaik taking second and Maddy Shekhawat claiming third. In the field events, Dyvhine Fonoti earned a personal best in the weight throw, while the distance medley relay team finished third and entered the program's top-ten all-time list.
On Day 2, the Eagles continued their success with Maddy Shekhawat securing first place in the 60m hurdles prelims, though he didn't compete in the final. Suzi Woodall won the pole vault, matching her personal best, while Kristian Phennicie sprinted to victory in the 60m. The women's 800m was a clean sweep, with Kaiya Sollie taking first, followed by Nattie Ruzauskas and Jenni Bissell in second and third.
In the mile, Jasmin Muneton placed third, and the field events remained strong with Jason Nwaka finishing third in the shot put and Nic Cunningham placing seventh in the triple jump. The Eagles' overall performance marked a successful first road trip, with plenty of personal records and new top-ten placements.
Men's Tennis - vs. Idaho State (Friday, January 31 at 8:00 a.m. Pacific Time), at Boise State (Friday, January 31 at 3:00 p.m. Pacific Time), vs. Montana (Sunday, February 2 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time)
After a week of no matches, EWU Men's Tennis will continue their non-conference slate. Another road doubleheader for the Eagles this week, as they travel to Boise. Eastern will start the day on Friday, Jan. 31 with an early match at 8 am against Idaho State, followed up by a match against host Boise State. EWU will then have a quick turn around, and host Montana Sunday, Feb. 2 at 10 am.
Eastern Washington is 10-25 all-time against Idaho State, and the two face off at a neutral site for the first time since 2006 in Boise when the Eagles beat the Bengals 6-1.
The Eagles and the Broncos will face off for the 18th time, as EWU is 1-16 all-time against BSU. Eastern is 6-55 all-time against Montana, and will look for their first win over the Grizzlies since 2019 when they came out victorious at home 5-2.
Caden Kammerer won Big Sky player of the week last week, after a 3-1 overall record against North Dakota and Gonzaga. Kammerer went 2-1 in doubles dual matches, and won his lone singles dual match.
Women's Tennis - vs. BYU (Saturday, February 1 at 10:30 a.m. Pacific Time)
On the road again are the Eagles this week, this time down in Moscow to take on BYU. Eastern will take on the Cougars Saturday, Feb.1 at 10 am in their first neutral site match of the season.
EWU continues their longest road stretch of the season with their third straight match away from home. The two teams will face off in their second all-time meeting. The Cougars defeated the Eagles in Provo 9-0 in 1985.
Junior Leandra Nizetic leads the Eagles this season with three overall wins. Nizetic is 2-1 overall in her singles dual matches, and also secured her first doubles win in the season opener against UC Davis.
Single game tickets for men's and women's basketball are now on sale. Reserve your seats at Reese Court for the 2024-25 seasons by clicking on the link here, emailing tickets@ewu.edu or calling the ticket office at 509-359-6059.
Join the Eagle Athletic Fund for as low as $50 per year! Support Eagle student-athletes on and off the field while enjoying exclusive EAF perks such as season ticket and tailgating priority, invitations to special events, exclusive access and more. Visit goeags.com/eaf for more information.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
FOLLOW THE EAGLES
SOCIAL: Twitter | Facebook | YouTube | Instagram
