CHENEY, Wash. – The 2018-19 Eastern Washington University women's basketball season is officially underway. The Eagles will be taking on local foe Gonzaga this Sunday (Nov. 11) at 2:05 p.m. to open this year's campaign.
 
BLACK OUT: Fans are encouraged to wear black to Sunday's contest. The first 100 Eastern Washington students will receive a free t-shirt.
 
GET YOUR TICKETS: Attendees that show their ticket from the Eastern Washington vs. UC Davis football game (Nov. 10) can purchase an $10.00 ticket. Additionally, those who show their EWU employee ID card and/or a retired/active military ID at the gate can receive a $8.00 ticket.
 
Single game tickets start at $12 and can be purchased, along with season tickets, at GoEags.com/Tickets.
 
HOW TO WATCH: Sunday's game will be broadcast live regionally on SWX. Those wanting to follow the game can also watch for free on WatchBigSky.com or on the Pluto TV app on Channel 234. Live stats are available on EWUStats.com and live, in-game, updates along with video highlights can be found by following the women's basketball team on Twitter, @EWUWBB.
 
 A LOOK AT THE EAGLES: With head coach Wendy Schuller entering her 18^th season at the helm of Eastern Washington women's basketball, the Eagles return three starters from a year ago. They have eight returning players in total, including four seniors.
 
Violet Kapri Morrow is prepped to take over the scoring for the Eagles after the loss of Eastern's all-time leading scorer Delaney Hodgins. Morrow averaged 14.7 points per game last year, including an average of 17.1 in Big Sky Conference play and was named third-team All-Big Sky.
 
Uriah Howard (8.9 ppg, 4.7 rebs.) and Brittany Klaman (4.4 ppg, 2.9 ast.) are the other returning starters.
 
Alissa Sealby, Amira Chandler and Baylee Rexing are back for their senior year, along with redshirt-junior Andie Easley and sophomore Cailyn Francis.
 
The 2017-18 squad totaled 2,098 points which is seventh all-time in program history, while averaging 67.7 points per game which is ninth. The Eagles drained 201 three-pointers which is third all-time and set a program record with 648 attempts. They were scrappy too, recording 322 steals to rank fourth in program history and lead the Big Sky.
 
A HISTORY ON SEASON OPENERS: Eastern is 14-22 (.389) all-time in season-openers as it enters its 37^th season as a Division I program. They have lost their last two openers on the road, and haven't opened the season with a win since hosting Eastern Oregon to open the 2015-16 season. The Eastern Oregon opener was also the last time that EWU has opened the season at home.
 
SUNDAY'S EXHIBITION: Eastern Washington has already had a taste of the upcoming season, as they took on Simon Fraser in an exhibition at home on Nov. 4, picking up a 72-62 victory.
 
EWU had three players score in double figures, while Violet Kapri Morrow earned a double-double (27 points, 12 rebounds). The Eagles were down 35-26 in the first half after only shooting 29 percent through two quarters, but improved to 59 percent in the second half to secure the six-point victory.
 
Alissa Sealby and Uriah Howard also scored in double figures with 11 points apiece. Sealby shot 4-for-6 from the field including 2-for-3 from behind the arc.
 
Freshman Jessica McDowell-White had seven assists to lead the team along with two steals, three rebounds and five points. Brittany Klaman also had seven assists to go with six rebounds. As a team, Eastern shot 43.3 percent on 29-for-67 shooting from the field. They also totaled 21 assists and only 12 turnovers. Eastern out-rebounded the Clan, 43-35 and held them to 39.3 percent from the field.
 
A LOOK AT THE BULLDOGS: Gonzaga opens up its season tonight (Nov. 7) at home against Big Sky foe Montana. They had one exhibition on Nov. 2 against Carroll College where they won 86-43.
 
The Bulldogs were picked to win the West Coast Conference for the sixth-straight season and named three seniors to the Preseason All-WCC team in Chandler Smith, Zykera Rice and Laura Stockton. Gonzaga is the reigning WCC champion, having won 13 of the last 14 regular-season titles.
 
Gonzaga returns three starters from a team that finished 27-6 overall last year with a trip to the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
 
SERIES HISTORY: Sunday afternoon marks the 45^th all-time meeting between the local foes. They have faced off for 16 consecutive seasons now dating back to 2003. They also met annually for 15 consecutive seasons from 1985 to 2001, taking a brief hiatus during the 2002 season.
 
Eastern trails the all-time series, 12-32. Their last win came on Dec. 31, 2003 on the road in a 72-69 victory, but have dropped 14 straight since. Last year, they met on Nov. 30, 2017 where Eastern fell in a 69-45 decision in Spokane.
 
UP NEXT: The Eagles are back in action at home on Wednesday, Nov. 14 to host Eastern Oregon at 6:05 p.m. Eastern's first road trip takes place on Saturday, Nov.17 at BYU for a 1 p.m. Pacific time tip before returning home to host PAC-12 foe Utah on Nov. 21.
 
FRESH FACES: The Eagles welcome eight newcomers to the 2018-19 squad, including seven freshmen and one junior transfer.
 
Leya DePriest (Palmer, Alaska / Wasilla HS) comes to Cheney after two seasons at Denver where she appeared in 35 games.
 
Tatiana Reese (East Menlo Park, Calif. / Woodside Priory School), Jessica McDowell-White (Brisbane, Australia), Tessa Burke (Missoula, Mont. / Loyola Sacred Heart HS), Bella Cravens (Laie, Hawai'I / Maryknoll School), Milly Knowles (Cumbria, England), Trinity Golder (Sandpoint, Idaho / Sandpoint HS) and Grace Kirscher (Sandpoint, Idaho / Sandpoint HS) round out the newcomers and all hope to make immediate impacts while they adjust to college life and the style of Eastern Washington women's basketball.
 
The Eagles also welcome new assistant coaches, Cody Bench and Nakia Arquette. Bench coached at Alaska Fairbanks from 2010 to 2017, helping the Nanooks improve from a one-win season in 2010-11 to averaging 13 wins per season during her final three years in Alaska. Arquette played at Utah and served as the Director of Operations for the Eagles last year before being elevated to her new position.
 
KAPRI'S QUEST FOR 1,000: Senior Violet Kapri Morrow is on the road to joining one of the most exclusive clubs in college basketball, the 1,000-point club. With exactly 800 career points, Morrow needs just 200 more to become the 18^th player in Eastern Washington women's basketball history to eclipse 1,000 points.
 
As a junior, she averaged 14.7 points per contest with 426 points on the year. She averaged 3.9 points per game as a freshman (124 total) and improved to 7.6 as a sophomore with 250 total.