CHICO, CALIF. - On Friday November 12th, the Sonoma State women's basketball team traveled up north to compete in the annual CCAA/PacWest Challenge hosted by Chico State. The Seawolves would take on two PacWest opponents on Friday and Saturday but they would kick off their season against the Penguins of Dominican University. Head coach Rich Shayewitz expands his duties this season as he was appointed Director of Basketball Operations last spring and now heads both the men's and women's basketball programs. Shayewitz, an SSU graduate, originally started as an assistant coach under Pat Fuscaldo on the men's side before taking over the women's program in 2017. Since then, the women have made the CCAA Tournament three years straight before the cancellation of the 2020-21 season due to COVID-19. Shayewitz looks to return to the conference championship with a bit younger and newer squad as SSU graduated all five starters during the 2019-20 season and will now feature some freshmen and transfers mixed in with their returning group for the 2021-22 campaign. 

After the first quarter of play SSU found themselves down six to the Penguins, 23-17. As a team, SSU shot just under 50% from the field in the first quarter with contributions from senior Zane Sheckherd and transfer Chasity Spady off of the bench, However, two early three pointers for Dominican helped give them a six point lead after ten minutes. Shayewitz and his squad would respond in the second quarter as the Seawolves outscored the Penguins 17-12 and held Dominican to just five made field goals in the period. 

Despite a tough shooting performance in the third quarter from both teams, the Seawolves yet again outscored the Penguins 13-12 to tie the game up at 47 a piece. As the fourth quarter began, Sonoma State's shooting woes continued as they went a combined 4-13 from the field and a quarter low in the game of just over 30% shooting. On the flip side, the Penguins only missed four field goals in the quarter to shoot a quarter high 72% to close out the game. SSU would ultimately fall 72-55 to open up their 2021-22 season. 

Senior forward Zane Sheckherd would lead the way with a solid productive night for the Seawolves as she finished with 12 points on 5-9 shooting. She would also grab 4 rebounds and finish 2-4 from the free throw line. Despite the early shooting struggles, Sonoma State's bench outscored Dominican's bench 33-25 which also included four players with 7 or more points off the bench. Freshman Ali McDonald and transfer Amanda Luckett both combined for 17 points on over 50% shooting in the contest as another bright spot for SSU. The Seawolves also out rebounded the Penguins 37-29 in the game allowing for them to own the second chance points 16-5. Shauna Jackson and Cielo Gonzalez each snagged 6 rebounds in the game to lead all SSU players.  

Unfortunately, the ultimate killer for Shayewitz and his group were the turnovers. Both teams had their fair share on the night but SSU finished the contest committing 20 turnovers and Dominican was able to score 24 points off of those to help close out the game. The women will return to the court tomorrow afternoon at 1:00 pm to face off against Fresno Pacific in their final game of the CCAA/PacWest Challenge. Be sure to follow your Seawolves on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get all the latest SSU athletics updates and information. @SonomaSeawolves #NomaNation