ABILENE – Abilene Christian got home and got right, beating Seattle 82-63 in its first game in Moody Coliseum of the month.
"We've been gone for 21 days, so we were just thrilled to be back home this weekend and next week," said ACU Head Coach
Julie Goodenough. "We need to take full advantage of playing in front of our fans. We had a great crowd tonight and I thought we played well and gave them something to cheer about."
The Wildcats got in an offensive rhythm early and shot 48 percent from the field for the night while stacking up 21 assists on 31 made baskets and made 11 three-pointers.
"This is how we'd like to play every night, really sharing the ball well and having 21 assists," said Goodenough. "I thought it was a very unselfish offensive game for us, where people were looking for teammates that had the best shots. That's really who we want to be. We want to be a team that really shares a ball well. Really proud of the way that we started. To go out and win each quarter was a big deal for us. We've been talking about doing that and not having a lull in a quarter. Just proud of their awareness tonight and for coming out and getting it done."
ACU never trailed in the game but Seattle kept it close in the first quarter, tying the game three times. The Wildcats methodically built a 40-30 lead by halftime with short flurries offensively while answering every threat the Redhawks made. Both teams were fouled nine times in the first half but Seattle led at the free throw line 7-1 with the Cats converting their only attempt of the half. ACU ended the night converting nine of 10 attempts from the stripe.
Zoe Jackson hit a three-pointer to spark a 9-0 run that saw ACU take a 54-36 lead with 5:12 left in the third quarter. She added another three-pointer with 8:08 to go in the game for ACU's first 20-point advantage, 68-46.
Gracy Wernli converted a three-point play for the Wildcats' largest lead, 76-53, with 4:35 remaining.
Bella Earle led ACU with 18 points six rebounds and seven assists while Jackson added 13 points,
Payton Hull scored 10 and
Addison Martin put up 12 points in her return to the starting lineup.
Makayla Moore led Seattle with 21 points and nine rebounds.
The Wildcats return to action in Moody at 1 p.m. on Saturday, hosting Utah Valley.
