By Sara Brooks, Assistant Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6219

SALEM, ORE. -- The Willamette University women's basketball team will look to rebound after a long weekend in eastern Washington, as they face the University of Puget Sound on Friday, Feb. 5 and Linfield College on Saturday, Feb. 6. WU will host UPS on Friday, and then travel to McMinnville, Ore., to face Linfield on Saturday. Both games are set for 6 p.m. (PST).

Previous Games

Willamette at Whitworth

Whitworth University surged out to a 13-0 lead at the beginning of the game and the Bearcats were unable to recover. Whitworth shot 55.2% from the field and Willamette shot 22.2%. Willamette eventually fell to the Pirates, 90-39.

Alex Zennan (Jr., G, Sammamish, WA/Eastlake HS) led the way with 15 points. She hit 3 of 7 three-point shots. Zennan was the only Bearcat to score double figures in the game.

Leah Pomante topped the Pirates with 14 points. Liz Horiatis added 12 points and Heather Burke chipped in 11 points.

Willamette at Whitman

Willamette shot just 16.7% from the field and was held to ten field goals against Whitman College. Whitman defeated the Bearcats, 67-35.

Willamette gave up a significant scoring margin from 3-point range, as the 'Cats missed all 11 of their long-range shots, while the Missionaries went 7 of 18 (38.9%) behind the arc.

Keilyn Fujioka (Jr., P, Kailua, HI/Iolani School) scored six points and grabbed nine rebounds. Zennan managed 12 points and three steals. Junior post Shayna Glynn (Boise, ID/Capital HS/Walla Walla CC) grabbed five rebounds and earned two assists in her first start of the season.

This Weekend's Opponents

University of Puget Sound
Nickname: Loggers
Location: Tacoma, Wash.
Affiliations: NCAA Division III, Northwest Conference
2008-09 Record: 18-9, 11-5 NWC
2009-10 Record: 17-3, 9-2 NWC
Last Meeting: Puget Sound won, 76-49, on Jan. 8, 2010 in Tacoma, Wash.

Willamette stayed close to Puget Sound for 30 minutes in the first meeting this year before the Loggers pulled away in the final 10 minutes of play. The Bearcats shot 40.8% for the game, one of their better shooting performances of the season.

The Bearcats were unable to find an answer to the Logger's senior point guard Claire Ely. Ely scored 24 points and had six assists in 33 minutes. Willamette made its strongest run of the game while Ely was in the training room with a minor injury.

In conference play, Puget Sound has only been defeated by defending NCAA Division III national champion George Fox University. UPS lost to George Fox, 65-62 in overtime on Jan. 10 and 60-51 on Jan. 29. The Loggers are ranked 18th in the latest D3hoops.com Poll. In order to win, the Bearcats will need to find a way to control Ely's contributions on the floor. Willamette has to find a way to score points early in the contest.

Linfield College
Nickname: Wildcats
Location: McMinnville, Ore.
Affiliations: NCAA Division III, Northwest Conference
2008-09 Record: 3-22, 2-4 NWC
2009-10 Record: 4-15, 2-8 NWC
Last Meeting: Linfield won, 68-55, on Jan. 9 in Salem, Ore.

Linfield defeated Willamette 68-55 in their first meeting earlier this season. The two teams battled back and forth the entire game before Linfield controlled the final minutes of play. Linfield, which is not a team known for its depth, received strong play from its starters, with four of them finishing in double figures.

Zennan tore up the Wildcats for 27 points, including seven 3-pointers in the first meeting. The Wildcats will likely be focused on shutting down Zennan from the outside during the rematch.

In order to win, the Bearcats will need to receive solid offensive play from multiple players. If the Bearcats can get at least three players to score in double digits, Willamette will have a good chance to win the game.

Bearcat Fast Breaks

* Alex Zennan ranks 3rd in the Northwest Conference in scoring with 14.9 points per game.

* Keilyn Fujioka ranks 3rd in the conference with 8.6 rebounds per game.

* As a team, Willamette ranks 2nd in the NWC in blocked shots per game (4.21).

* Zennan needs just five 3-pointers in Willamette's six remaining games to tie for third place in 3-point shots made in a single season in Willamette history (54). Zennan would tie former Bearcat Kelly (Sorenson) Ioane. Ioane is the wife of current men's basketball Head Coach Kip Ioane.

* The Northwest Conference has two teams in the latest D3hoops.com national poll. George Fox University is ranked 5th and is currently 17-2 overall and 10-0 in the NWC. The University of Puget Sound is ranked 18th. The Loggers are 16-3 overall and 8-2 in the NWC.