Despite losing its leading scorer Jennifer Harris before the final game of the Division II Women's Basketball Championship, Washburn rallied with defense to record a 70-53 win over Seattle Pacific March 26 in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Harris had to sit out the game because of a back injury she suffered in a semifinal victory over Central Arkansas, but the Lady Blues harassed Seattle Pacific into 33.9 percent shooting from the field, including 20 percent in the first half, to captured the program's first national title.

Senior Juwanna Rivers stepped into Harris' spot in the lineup and poured in a season-high 22 points to provide the offensive spark for the Lady Blues.

"Juwanna was special," said Washburn coach Ron McHenry, whose team ended the season with a 35-2 record. "She played a couple of different roles for us. I told her before the game that she was a scorer in this game, and we needed it."

Rivers took the challenge and went 7-for-9 from the field, including 3-of-4 from three-point range. She also grabbed six rebounds and handed out three assists.

It was a fitting way for her to end her intercollegiate basketball career.

"My approach wasn't any different, but I just shot a lot more," Rivers said. "For the seniors, it was our last go-round. Tomorrow we're regular citizens; we're not basketball players anymore."

Washburn led 29-19 at halftime and opened the final 20 minutes with an 8-0 run. Rivers contributed two three-pointers during the spurt.

The large deficit combined with shooting woes made it too big of a hill for Seattle Pacific to climb.

"All year long we've guarded people," McHenry said. "In this day and age, it's a little bit harder to get the kind of kid that is committed to working hard enough to play good defense. We spend the majority of our time in practice working on defense, and it paid off."

Brooke Ubelaker added 20 points and Lora Westling had 12 to help lead Washburn.

Seattle Pacific, 30-3, managed to put together a run midway through the second half to cut the lead to 54-46 with 6:28 remaining but never moved closer.

"I think if we could have hit some shots early in the game and gotten in rhythm, we might have played better," Seattle Pacific coach Gordy Presnell said. "We never got into a flow until the middle of the second half."

Washburn's Carla Sintra, who had 19 points and 11 rebounds in the semifinals against Central Arkansas, was named the tournament's most outstanding player. Rivers, Westling and Amy Taylor of Seattle Pacific were also all-tournament selections.

"It doesn't seem real right now," Westling said. "It seems like it's just another weekend, and we'll pack up next weekend to go to another tournament. I'm just really proud of this program and this team."

McHenry was proud of the way his team embraced the pressure of the championship game.

"The first half was the best we can play, and thank goodness for that first half," he said. "This team is tough and gritty. They're talented, too, but they work so hard."

Quarterfinals

Seattle Pacific 67, Grand Valley St. 55; Merrimack 79, St. Cloud St. 78; Central Ark. 87, Shaw 73; Washburn 73, Charleston (W. V.) 60.

Semifinals

Seattle Pacific 73, Merrimack 64

Merrimack: Jenny Smith 6-17, 2-4, 6, 14; Joelle Martin 3-19, 10-12, 11, 17; Ashley Brownlee 4-8, 0-0, 4, 8; Eileen Brosnihan 4-15, 2-4, 7, 10; Kara Borelli 0-1, 0-0, 3, 0; Shannon Bodamer 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Liz Imbriacco 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Katie Scurrah 1-2, 0-0, 2, 3; Gately Golden 2-2, 3-4, 6, 8; Krystyn Quist 2-7, 0-0, 10, 4. TOTALS: 22-71, 17-24, 54 (5 team), 64.

Seattle Pacific: Carli Smith 4-9, 4-4, 10, 12; Mandy Wood 6-20, 2-2, 1, 18; Amy Taylor 4-15, 4-4, 3, 14; Jenny Poe 2-10, 2-2, 10, 6; Brittney Kroon 1-4, 5-6, 9, 7; Rachel Strand 1-4, 2-2, 2, 4; Trisha Hermanson 0-2, 4-4, 1, 4; Beth Christensen 0-0, 2-2, 1, 2; Michelle Beaumont 1-7, 0-0, 0, 3; Quinn Brewe 1-3, 1-2, 4, 3. TOTALS: 20-74, 26-28, 52 (11 team), 73.

Halftime: Seattle Pacific 36, Merrimack 28. Three-point field goals: Merrimack 3-14 (Golden 1-1, Scurrah 1-1, Martin 1-5, Borelli 0-1, Smith 0-3, Brownlee 0-3); Seattle Pacific 7-29 (Wood 4-13, Taylor 2-10, Beaumont 1-4, Strand 0-1, Hermanson 0-1). Officials: Diane DePaul, Tom Hallead, Angie Enlund. Attendance: 1, 402.

Washburn 69, Central Arkansas 67

Washburn: April Roadhouse 1-2, 3-4, 6, 6; Jennifer Harris 2-7, 2-4, 3, 6; Brooke Ubelaker 0-8, 0-0, 9, 0; Lora Westling 5-13, 3-4, 3, 16; Carla Sintra 7-16, 5-6, 11, 19; Cindy Keeley 2-2, 3-4, 4, 7; Juwanna Rivers 2-6, 0-0, 5, 5; Erin Menard 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0; Dani McHenry 2-3, 0-0, 3, 4; Megan Sullivan 3-4, 0-5, 2, 6. TOTALS: 24-62, 16-27, 48 (2 team), 69.

Central Arkansas: Carone Harris 8-24, 14-15, 9, 33; Caronica Randle 9-23, 6-6, 17, 24; Traci Graham 0-3, 0-0, 0, 0; Mecaela Thomas 2-13, 5-6, 10, 9; Victoria Richards 0-4, 0-0, 6, 0; Allicia Kellogg 0-0, 0-0, 1, 0; Renita Dobbins 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0; Rose Lloyd 0-1, 1-2, 1, 1; Ashley Hutchcraft 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0. TOTALS: 19-69, 26-29, 48 (4 team), 67.

Halftime: Central Arkansas 28, Washburn 26. Three-point field goals: Washburn 5-20 (Westling 3-9, Roadhouse 1-1, Rivers 1-2, McHenry 0-1, Harris 0-3, Ubelaker 0-4); Central Arkansas 3-19 (Harris 3-9, Lloyd 0-1, Dobbins 0-1, Richards 0-2, Thomas 0-3, Graham 0-3). Officials: Sheilah Collins, Scott Starkey, Ken Kelly. Attendance: 1, 601.

Championship game

Washburn 70, Seattle Pacific 53

Washburn: Brooke Ubelaker 6-14, 5-6, 6, 20; Carla Sintra 3-11, 0-0, 4, 7; Juwanna Rivers 7-9, 5-8, 6, 22; April Roadhouse 1-4, 2-2, 8, 5; Lora Westling 4-11, 1-2, 5, 12; Cindy Keeley 0-1, 0-0, 0, 0; Erin Menard 0-2, 0-0, 0, 0; Holly Henrichs 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Dani McHenry 0-0, 0-0, 1, 0; Megan Sullivan 2-2, 0-0, 3, 4. TOTALS: 23-54, 13-18, 36 (2 team), 70.

Seattle Pacific: Carli Smith 6-8, 2-3, 13, 14; Brittney Kroon 6-11, 2-4, 4, 14; Mandy Wood 2-7, 0-0, 1, 5; Amy Taylor 2-10, 0-0, 2, 5; Jenny Poe 0-1, 0-0, 1, 0; Rachel Strand 0-1, 1-2, 2, 1; Trisha Hermanson 1-3, 0-0, 0, 3; Beth Christensen 0-1, 1-2, 0, 1; Michelle Beaumont 4-15, 0-0, 5, 10; Autumn Fielding 0-0, 0-0, 0, 0; Quinn Brewe 0-5, 0-0, 6, 0. TOTALS: 21-62, 6-11, 39 (5 team), 53.

Halftime: Washburn 29, Seattle Pacific 19. Three-point field goals: Washburn 11-27 (Rivers 3-4, Westling 3-7, Ubelaker 3-10, Sintra 1-1, Roadhouse 1-3, Menard 0-2); Seattle Pacific 5-27 (Beaumont 2-10, Hermanson 1-3, Wood 1-5, Taylor 1-8, Strand 0-1). Officials: Sheilah Collins, Ken Kelly, Diane DePaul. Attendance: 1, 062.