Gonzaga WBB Defeats Oregon State 77-67, Wins First WCC Title Since 2021-22
One year ago today, Gonzaga women’s basketball walked off the court at Orleans Arena with tears, disappointment, and heartbreak. Surrendering a lead in the final minutes, the one-seeded Bulldogs had lost 63-61 to four-seeded Oregon State in the conference tournament semifinals.
Three current Zags were on that team. WCC Player and Freshman of the Year, Lauren Whittaker, was glued to the bench, redshirting as she recovered from a torn ACL. Allie Turner, who had hit a program-record 105 threes in her freshman campaign, watched as Kennedie Shuler ran by her for the game-tying transition layup after a turnover. And Inês Bettencourt, who’s now a senior, was the defender guarding Shuler when the Beavers point guard drove inside for the game-winning layup with .7 seconds remaining.
This season, there wasn’t much continuity between the rosters, but those three staples remained for the Zags, and they each contributed to a different result this time around. There were more waterworks from GU, but of the happy variety, as the Bulldogs (24-9, 14-4) took down OSU (23-11, 13-5) 77-67 to win their 11th conference championship, punching their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
