Box Score
Photo Gallery (images by Austin McKeon)

Azusa, CA – Academy of Art University Women's Basketball took its first step towards a Pacific West Conference Championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament with a 77-50 dominating victory over BYU-Hawaii on Thursday inside Azusa Pacific's Felix Event Center. In a matchup of the third-seeded Urban Knights and sixth-seeded Seasiders, ART U closed the first half on a 13-0 run then followed by shooting over 55 percent in the second half. Senior Ariel Dale's 14 points led a balanced Knights attack that scored 28 points off 22 BYUH turnovers.

"We came into this tournament focused on one game at a time," head coach LaNay Larson said. "We talked about forcing turnovers, shutting down their top players and keeping them off the offensive boards. I thought overall we did a good job of all three. All year our defense has fueled our offense and we continue to rely on that to win games."

It was an early 7-2 advantage held by Academy of Art after senior Jordan Rogers drained a 3-pointer, but the Seasiders fought back to within three points on a triple of their own from Danna Lynn Hooper. After freshman Regina Camera answered with her own make from distance, freshman Sha'Nice Storey caught fire. The Portland, OR native ignited another 7-2 ART U burst which she capped with another long ball.

Though they were up 11, Academy of Art was hit by a 7-0 response by the Seasiders finished off by another 3-pointer by Hooper. BYU-Hawaii came as close as two points, but Storey buried her third triple of the half to start yet another surge. ART U would close the first period with a 13-0 push that continued to see the Knights get out and run, leading them to a 37-22 halftime advantage.

Rogers struck again with a 3-pointer to start the second half which made the run 16-0 and Academy of Art never looked back. Hooper hit another long range shot and yet the Seasiders would not come closer than 14 points the rest of the way due to the Knights hot shooting. On two baskets facilitated by freshman Zoie Sheng, senior Katy Wade scored inside and Dale converted a layup in transition to push back.

Midway through the second period, a layup by freshman Jasmin Guinn made it a 20-point game (56-36). That bucket was part of a 16-2 burst, which included back-to-back jumpers by Dale, and with just over eight minutes to go the ART U lead was nearly 30 points. Enabling a rest for many of the Knights starters, the margin held up the remainder of the game eventually resulting in the 77-50 final.

In a truly balanced effort for the now 21-8 Academy of Art, four Urban Knights scored in double figures led by Dale's 14 points. Camera delivered 13 points with five steals while Griggs posted 12 points and nine rebounds off the bench. Guinn added 11 points and four steals.

“As a team we've been preparing and this is our first time being in a big tournament,” Dale said. “Playing on a huge stage takes a lot more focus. I've just been trying to stay more focused on the game on the court and blocking out the things around me.”

Wade was two points from a double-double, finishing with eight points and 11 rebounds as well as three blocks. Storey offered nine points and Nicol Biesek put up six rebounds and four assists.

“We had great contributions off the bench from Shani, Alisa and Jas which really took some of the pressure off our starting group,” Coach Larson said. “We have a solid rotation of players where anyone can lead us in any game and that was big for us today. Our goal was to get a big lead and maintain it so we could play a lot of kids and limit minutes and we were successful with that.”

The Seasiders were paced by a game-high 21 points from Hooper, but no other BYU-Hawaii player scored in double figures. Kristen Hartley had eight points and 12 rebounds while a major storyline was just four points from the PacWest Conference's leading scorer Shayla Washington. The Seasiders finish the year 5-22 overall.

“This was the first step towards the next game and we're going to keep getting better,” Dale said. “As a team, we're ready from head to toe. We all showed up and the stage wasn't too bright for us.”


Academy of Art will return to Azusa Pacific's Felix Event Center tomorrow for its semifinal matchup with #2 seed Grand Canyon whom the Urban Knights defeated earlier this year in overtime. Tipoff is scheduled for 12:30 PM.

“We've obviously got a very tough opponent in Grand Canyon [tomorrow],” Coach Larson said. “They're one of the top teams in the region and have been ranked in the country all year long. We've got respect for that program and that team and we know that we're going to have to come out with our best game. We talk about defense and rebounding and that's where it starts for us. We'll continue to focus on that and see what we can do tomorrow.”