Gonzaga women have players return from injury, cruise to win against Pacific 69-58
Gonzaga had all the momentum Thursday night, and that was just in pregame warmups.
Buoyed by the return of forwards Eliza Hollingsworth and Maud Huijbens, the Zags went wire-to-wire in a 69-58 win over Pacific in front of an enthusiastic crowd at the McCarthey Athletic Center.
There was a lot to appreciate in GU’s 19th straight home win, which kept the 20th-ranked Zags one game ahead of Portland in the West Coast Conference race and also kept alive their hopes for a high seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Mostly, though, there was a warm feeling surrounding the return of Hollingsworth and Huijbens, both of whom were sidelined by concussion protocol for two weeks and three months, respectively.
The feelings were shared by the crowd, which gave Hollingsworth the biggest cheer of the night during pregame introductions. Huijbens also got a warm welcome when she came off the bench late in the first quarter.
“I’m very happy to be back,” said Hollingsworth, who crashed head-first to the Kennel floor two weeks earlier against Loyola Marymount.
“It was pretty scary,” Hollingsworth said of her first concussion and the protocol that followed. “There was definitely a learning curve.”
Admittedly a bit rusty, Hollingsworth missed all four of her 3-point attempts but still finished with eight points, six rebounds and three assists. Huijbens added four points and four boards.
“The players are all happy to have them back because they care about them,” coach Lisa Fortier said after the game, which marked a milestone of sorts: For the first time since mid-November, at least 10 Zags are in uniform.
“It’s been a long time,” Fortier said. “But we still have to grind and rebound and execute.”
That’s especially true with only three games left in the regular season. GU is 24-3 overall and 13-1 in the WCC, but Portland is still in the hunt after beating Saint Mary’s on Thursday.
Unlike the Zags’ three-point win in Stockton, California, last month, there was no last-second drama in the teams’ second meeting.
Kaylynne Truong scored nine points in the first quarter, which ended with the Zags ahead 20-7 after a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Brynna Maxwell. GU led 17-3 but lost some of that momentum when Yvonne Ejim picked up her second foul and went to the bench late in the first quarter.
Pacific (12-15, 7-9) twice got within seven points in the second quarter, but GU led 35-24 at halftime.
Gonzaga all but put the game away with a strong third quarter, which included five made 3-pointers in six attempts.
Maxwell started things with a short jumper, then hit Hollingsworth for an easy layup. Three-pointers from Truong and McKayla Williams were quickly followed by two more from Maxwell, including a four-point play that gave the Zags a 56-31 advantage with 2 minutes left in the period.
The Zags coasted from there. Pacific got within 12 points with 2½ minutes left, causing Fortier to call a quick timeout.
Truong, the reigning WCC Player of the Week, had a game-high 21 points – all on seven made 3-pointers on 10 attempts.
Maxwell finished with 17 points while going 4 for 7 from long range.
The Zags’ final home game is Saturday at 2 p.m. against Saint Mary’s. Traditionally, the final home game doubles as Senior Day, but Fortier deflected when asked about plans for Saturday.
Gonzaga has only three seniors on its roster. Maxwell announced months ago that she intends to return next year, but Kayleigh and Kaylynne Truong haven’t made an official announcement on their plans. Fortier said plans will be finalized on Friday.
“It could be anything,” she said.
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