Gonzaga’s Zykera Rice has been invited to participate in the Seattle Storm’s May 5 training camp in Seattle, becoming the ninth player in program history to either be drafted or invited to a WNBA training camp.

As the Gonzaga women left the court at Gill Coliseum on the night of March 25, their faces showed fatigue and disappointment, but not a trace of “What if?”

Her college basketball career had ended 10 minutes earlier in a game that could have gone either way. But Chandler Smith didn’t talk about the missed opportunities in a six-point loss Monday night to Oregon State.

Once again, Oregon State found a way – and the Gonzaga women are finding their way home after a remarkable season. In a game that wasn’t decided until the final minute, the Beavers made the big plays at the end to beat the Zags 76-70 in a second-round NCAA Tournament game Monday night at Gill Coliseum.

Gonzaga expected to face some adversity Monday night. The heat in Gill Coliseum, the crowd of 8,000-plus – those were givens. But foul trouble? That wasn’t in the equation, but it added up by the end of the second-round NCAA Tournament game, which Oregon State won 76-70.

Key moment, offensive MVP and defensive MVP from Oregon State’s 76-70 victory over Gonzaga at Gill Coliseum in Corvallis, Oregon.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Mikayla Pivec notched a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds as fourth-seeded Oregon State used a late run to down No. 5 seed Gonzaga 76-70 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Monday at Gill Coliseum.

No hard feelings, Gonzaga fans: Katie Baker still roots for the Zags. So does her mom, who continues to own season tickets to see the women at the Kennel. But Monday night both women will be wearing orange.

It’s not about the minutes, it’s what you do with them. Gonzaga reserves Melody Kempton and Louise Forsyth learned that lesson the easy way on Saturday. Now they hope to continue the trend in a second-round NCAA Tournament game Monday night at Oregon State.

To hear the coaches four years later, there were no losers in that epic second-round NCAA Tournament game between Gonzaga and Oregon State.

Now who’s feeling vulnerable? With all they’ve endured in the last two weeks, it should have been the Gonzaga women.