The Western Washington University women’s basketball team took on Western Oregon University in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships semifinals Friday, March 6, at WECU Court at Carver Gym in front of a home crowd of 1,127 fans.
The Vikings defeated the Wolves 66-55, securing a 12-0 home record and a ride to play in the title game.
Early in the game, Western struggled to get things moving on both ends of the court, according to senior forward Olivia Hodges.
“We started off a little slow, and it’s never fun when we’re not all playing together,” Hodges said.
After ending the first quarter with a 4-point lead, the Vikings defended their lead by scoring another 16 points, bringing the score to 38-25 at halftime.
During halftime, Western head coach Carmen Dolfo reminded players to focus on what their strengths are defensively and their abilities to play together as a team.
“We need to play to our strengths and we need to stick to our game plan and we need to do it together,” Dolfo said.
It took some time for that new focus to set in during the third quarter, but a 3-pointer by junior guard Libby Stump and two points from senior forward Aspen Garrison helped get the offense rolling.
The Vikings also started coming together on defense, according to Stump, who said that the team knows their strong defensive play travels with them no matter what team they’re playing — and it helps them kickstart their offense.
“When (defense) starts kicking in, then I’m really excited that we’re rolling, that we’re pushing the ball up, then we’re attacking from every position,” Stump said.
Hodges also said that she felt Western’s teamwork coming together during the second half.
“When we started moving the ball and sharing it and taking care of time and looking for what’s there and not forcing anything, I was like ‘Okay, we got this,’” Hodges said.
As the Vikings heated up the court, the home crowd’s enthusiasm skyrocketed, adding even more energy to the game.
Kaia Wruck, 10, attended the game with her friends Lyla Christie and Tenley Hawes. Eager to support their favorite players, the girls said that the energy inside WECU Court was filled with excitement, energy and craziness.
Stump said that she was grateful for the crowd’s atmosphere and encouragement, which made a huge difference in how the team played.
After securing the semifinal victory, the No. 1 seed Vikings advanced to the next stage of the tournament, facing off against the No. 6 seed Montana State University Billings for the championship title.
2026 was the third time in the last four years that these two teams have met in the championship game, with Western taking the win in 2023 and 2024. Defeating the Vikings 66-61 in this year’s game, the Yellowjackets became the first No. 6 seeded team in GNAC history to clinch the title win.
Similar to the semifinal game, the Vikings started slow in the first quarter, shooting 27.8% from the field while the young Yellowjackets established a 3-point lead by the end of the quarter.
As MSUB’s only senior, forward Kaitlin Grossman discussed how she has stepped into a leadership role and helped guide the young roster throughout the season.
“At the beginning of the season I just wanted everyone to know they could always come talk to me about anything,” Grossman said. “Now age is irrelevant, it doesn’t really matter how old you are.”
In the second quarter, the Vikings were 0-for-6 from 3-point range until freshman guard Eden Sander put one up with only 2:40 remaining in the second half.
A pair of layups from sophomore center Vivienne Barret and junior guard Demi Dykstra and a three from Stump helped the Vikings catch up to the Yellowjackets, but a three from MSUB freshman guard Tailey Harris at the buzzer tied the score 30-30 at halftime.
The Yellowjackets fought for their lead back in the second half, putting up strong defense against the Vikings, who shot only 25% in the third quarter. The Vikings were down 51-40 heading into the fourth quarter.
MSUB head coach Kevin Woodin was proud of how his team played on both ends of the court and highlighted freshman forward Rae Smart’s defensive effort.
“Smart played tremendous basketball today,” Woodin said. “She had to guard one of the best players in the nation (Hodges) and held her own.”
Western came back in the fourth with a barrage of 3-pointers, including two from Dykstra, who put up nine points in the first three minutes of the fourth quarter, bringing the score to 51-49.
But the Vikings were unable to make a big enough comeback against the physical Montana State team led by freshman forward Cassie Chesnut.
Chesnut put up 21 points and four blocks for the Yellowjackets, becoming the first freshman to be named GNAC Women’s Basketball Championships MVP and was named to the All-Tournament Team alongside Grossman.
“We’re a young team, but we can fight with these older teams,” Chesnut said.
Stump and Hodges were also named to the All-Tournament Team, and Hodges finished the game with her 23rd double-double after scoring 10 points and 13 rebounds, breaking Western’s school record for most single-season double doubles.
Despite a tough loss, the Vikings are headed to Ellensburg on March 13 for the NCAA DII West Regional tournament as the No. 2 seed. They will face off against No. 7 seed Point Loma Nazarene University, with tip-off scheduled for Friday, March 13, at 2:30 p.m. inside Nicholson Pavilion.
Erica Stavnem (she/her) is a sports and recreation reporter for The Front. She is a second-year Western student and is majoring in visual journalism. In addition, she is a member of Western’s sailing team. She enjoys reading, camping and travel. You can reach her at ericastavnem.thefront@gmail.com.
Caitlin Grygorcewicz (she/her) is a sports and recreation reporter this winter quarter. She is in her second year, majoring in visual journalism, and is returning to The Front for a third time after previously serving as the photo and video editor. In her free time, you can catch her cleaning her camera, climbing rocks and cooking good food. You can reach her at caitlingrygorcewicz.thefront@gmail.com.
