WSU Depth Shines in 80-58 Win in WCC Tournament Opener

Thursday, March 5

Las Vegas, Nev.

12:00 PM

Washington State University

8-24,6-12WCC

Seattle University

5-25,1-17WCC

Seattle U

Washington St.

Photo by: West Coast Conference

March 05, 2026 | Women's Basketball

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By: Washington State Athletic Communications

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (March 5, 2026) – Washington State women's basketball pulled away with a dominant middle stretch Wednesday afternoon, defeating Seattle U 80-58 at Orleans Arena in the opening round of the 2026 Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Basketball Championship

The Cougars (8-24, 6-12 WCC) used a big second quarter to create separation after a tight opening period, finishing the day with four players in double figures and forcing 17 Redhawk turnovers on the way to the convincing win.

Washington State shot 47.8 percent from the field, outrebounded Seattle U 43-40 and turned defense into offense with 11 steals in the victory.

Eleonora Villa led all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting while adding three assists.

Keandra Koorits contributed 13 points, Malia Ruud added 12 points and seven rebounds, and Alex Covill finished with 12 points and six boards.

Mackenzie Chatfield filled the stat sheet with eight points, five assists, and three steals.

Teams traded baskets early, with Villa scoring the Cougars' first four points to keep things even. A pair of late three-pointers — one from Villa and another from Koorits — helped WSU edge in front, but Seattle U answered with a Stricklin triple in the closing seconds to send the game into the second quarter tied at 17-17.

Washington State seized control in the second period. Ruud sparked the run with a put-back layup before Koorits converted a steal into a fast-break score and three-point play to push the Cougars ahead. Ruud followed with back-to-back three-pointers as WSU strung together a 15-2 surge midway through the quarter, stretching the lead into double digits. The Cougars shot 11-of-19 in the period and took advantage of Redhawk miscues, carrying a 44-32 advantage into halftime.

The momentum continued after the break. Villa opened the third quarter with a jumper, and Covill added consecutive baskets inside to extend the margin. Chatfield finished a transition layup later in the period to give Washington State its largest lead of the quarter at 52-34 as the Cougars continued to control the glass and pace.

Seattle U trimmed the deficit slightly, but Washington State answered with steady offense down the stretch. Villa and Covill scored early in the fourth before the Cougars' depth helped close things out, as WSU finished with 33 points from its bench.

Notes

Eleonora Villa's 22 points puts her at 1,449 career points, 11th in program history and 36 from t-ninth (1,485).
Villa also has 522 points this season, the most she has scored in a single-season, and 10th-most all-time in program history, eight from moving up to ninth.
Villa made two threes to move to 139 career made threes, 10th all-time at WSU and two away from 9th (141).
Villa's eight makes puts her at 571 made field goals for her career, ninth all-time at WSU, and five from t-seventh (576).
Now at 3,429 career minutes played, Villa is eighth all-time at WSU, and 12 from seventh (3,441).
Alex Covill sits at 148 career blocks, fifth all-time in program history and eight from moving up to fourth (156).
Covill's 12 points moved her to 197 on the season, three shy of reaching 200 for the second-consecutive season.
Charlotte Abraham's three points puts her at 496 career points, four away from 500.
Abraham's seven rebounds put her at 199 for the season, 38 away from top-10 all-time at WSU in a single-season (237).
The team's 80 points scored matched the third most in a game this season.
32 makes from the field today (32-67) is the second-most in a game this season.
The Cougars hauled in 35 defensive rebounds (second-most this season) and 43 total rebounds (fourth-most).
12 steals for the team was also the second-most in a game this season.

Up Next
The Cougars advance to the second round of the WCC Tournament to play 8-seed Pacific on Friday, March 6 at 12 p.m. noon.;

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