Freshmen help Gonzaga women rally past West Virginia

Gonzaga had no simple solutions for what West Virginia brought to the opening game of the 2015 Naismith Hall of Fame Challenge Sunday afternoon in the McCarthy Athletic Center.

But what the Bulldogs worked out, using a freshman from Gonzaga Prep and a redshirt freshman from Fairfield, Montana, solved the problem nicely, and perhaps, helped define the kind of team the 2015-16 Bulldogs will be.

Laura Stockton and Jill Barta each scored 14 points off the bench, starters Ellie Tinkle and Shelby Cheslek added12 and 10 points each, and Kiara Kudrow grabbed 13 rebounds as Gonzaga held off West Virginia 62-57.

“This was the kind of game where a lot of players stepped up,” coach Lisa Fortier said. “Whether it was for one play or for a series of plays, a lot of players stepped up.”

The Mountaineers (2-1) came into the game riding high after whipping Coppin State,96-64 and with a lineup that was tall and athletic and as tough as its reputation.

But starting center Lanay Montgomery got into early foul trouble and the Bulldogs put together two second-quarter runs (nine straight and five straight points) fueled in part by 10 West Virginia turnovers to take a 35-18 lead at intermission.

And then the easy solutions ended.

The Mountaineers, who did not score back-to-back baskets in the first half, began stringing points together and the 17-point first-half lead was cut by 10 points by the end of the third quarter. Katrina Pardee’s 3-pointer with 8:42 left tied the game at 44-4.

And then it was Gonzaga’s turn to chase.

“It’s still early in the season and we haven’t worried through everything in the offense,” Fortier said. “I kept telling (the players) that they didn’t need to worry – we just needed to find the counters to what West Virginia was doing. There’s always a counter to anything a team does.

“I think some of the challenge was that (West Virginia) was spacing itself in a way that changed the angles we’re used to using and we needed to find new angles to attack the basket.”

For a few brief moments late in the third quarter, the Bulldogs began looking for someone to take charge.

Coming out of a time out with 7:30 left to play, Stockton did just that.

The cagey freshman drilled a 3-pointer from the left wing that cut pulled the Bulldogs within one, 48-47.

When Bria Holmes knocked down a 3-pointer to give the Mountaineers a 52-49 lead, Stockton, the former Bullpup, found a crease in the defense, put her head down and drove to the basket, drew the foul and converted an answering three-point play.

When Holmes knocked down another 3-ball, Stockton hit repeat, drove into traffic and got a layup to fall, but couldn’t do the same for the free throw and the Bulldogs trailed 57-56.

So, she did it a third time and gave Gonzaga the lead for good at 58-57.

Cheslek drained a pair of free throws when West Virginia had to foul and Stockton did the same with 4.9 seconds left to put the game away.

“It’s not that I was looking for a chance to have a big game for myself,” Stockton said. “I’ve just been looking for a way to contribute and help this team.”

Fortier said she was especially pleased with how hard Barta hit the boards, coming down with eight rebounds.

The loss denied West Virginia coach Mike Carey of his 300th career victory and he remains three wins shy of becoming the all-time winningest coach at West Virginia.

Gonzaga plays Grand Canyon tonight at 6 in the second round of the tournament, followed by West Virginia and USC.