Credit: GR Productions
Pirates Prevail Over Washington State Cougars 74-65 to Close Non-Conference Play
Published: Tuesday, December 16, 2025
by Lauren Reese
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J - Seton Hall women’s basketball (7-3, 1-0) prevailed over the Washington State Cougars (1-11, 0-0) in Walsh Gymnasium this evening, 74-65. Freshman Zahara Bishop led the night in scoring for the Pirates, knocking down her first collegiate double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
In their previous game before this, the Pirates bounced back after two losses to Columbia
and NC State, respectively, with a 69-63 win over Auburn. Meanwhile, the Cougars came
into this one with only one win on their record so far, and still could not find their
footing tonight.
The Pirates flew out the gates on a 12-0 run for four minutes and 30 seconds to start
this one, highlighted by quick three-point shots from Savannah Catalon and Jada Eads.
Washington State immediately called a timeout to think things over, but Seton Hall
would not take their foot off the pedal.
The home team was scoring buckets on a variety of plays. Clean looks from the mid-range
for Zahara Bishop and Jordana Codio, an and-one from Codio, seven quick points from
Ja’Kahla Craft in just three minutes off the bench, were just some of the notable
highlights of dominance within the first quarter. It was all Pirates' ball, and after
the first quarter, the score read 30-10.
But Washington State’s Lauren Glazier wanted the next quarter to be a better representation
of her team, as she converted on two consecutive shots to open up the action. After
those points, as well as a bucket from Catalon, both teams went quiet for about three
minutes, neither one able to find their stride on scoring.
But Washington State would break that stalemate, going on a 6-0 run in about two and
a half minutes, to make it a twelve point game. Seton Hall would be the team to call
timeout this time.
Some Seton Hall free throws from Zahara Bishop and Jada Eads would put some stop to
the bleeding, as around the three-minute mark in the second quarter, Codio and Valenzuela
knocked down some buckets. On the other end, Washington State found some success within
three straight buckets from Charlotte Abraham. But Codio and Natalia Hall-Rosa answered
back with some layups and jumpers, with Codio’s shot being the punctuation on the
end of the quarter. Hall led 44-29 entering the half.
In similar fashion to the first quarter, the Pirates stormed out on a 10-0 run that
looked unbreakable. Valenzuela, Eads, and Bishop all drained shots from all over the
court, forcing Washington State to once again call timeout.
Eleanora Villa would be the one to right the ship for her team after the timeout, connecting from downtown and on a layup. Despite being up 20, Seton Hall called a timeout with about six minutes left in the quarter.
The Pirates would continue to hover around a 20-point lead for the majority of this
quarter, despite some offensive flurries from the Cougars, courtesy of Villa once
again. However, a 13-3 run favoring the away team caught the Pirates off guard, as
Seton Hall were looking a bit slower tempo-wise than Washington State. Nonetheless,
the Pirates remained steadily in control, and score read 61-46 by the end of the quarter.
However, the fourth and final quarter of action saw Washington State command once
again, making buckets from seemingly everywhere. The Cougars forced the Pirates into
uncharacteristic sloppy turnovers on the court, shot-clock violations, as well as
out-of-bounds touches within the first four minutes of the quarter.
After struggling in numerous past games to finish out on a strong note, such as against
Princeton, NC State, and Columbia, Pirate fans were having deja vu: a fifteen point
lead had now become a lead of only six.
It was bound to be a nailbiter here in Walsh. After it became just a three-point lead
for Seton Hall, Messiah Hunter came up with a monster block against a three-point
attempt from Koorits with about 30 seconds left in the quarter. Both teams called
numerous timeouts as the clock wound down, and while the Cougars fouled, the Pirates
made enough free throws to stay out of any buzzer-beater troubles caused by their
opponents.
The Pirates took down the Cougars 74-65, and now turn their attention to consistent
BIG EAST play. They will take on the Villanova Wildcats at the Finneran Pavillion,
with tipoff at 7:00 P.M.
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