Willamette Women's Basketball Team to Start Season at Northwest Christian

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

SALEM, Ore. -- Led by returning players Drew Farmer (Sr., PG, Brookings, OR/Brookings-Harbor HS), Elizabeth Logsdon (Sr., F, McMinnville, OR/McMinnville HS) and Amanda Carpenter (Jr., G, Beaverton, OR/Sunset HS) the Willamette University women's basketball team will begin the 2019-20 season with a road game at Northwest Christian University in Eugene, Oregon, on Saturday, Nov. 9 at 1 p.m. (PST). The Bearcats will return to Salem for their home opener on Sunday, Nov. 10, when they will take on Walla Walla University (Wash.) at 3 p.m. in Cone Field House.

Last year, Farmer averaged 4.3 assists per game to rank third in the Northwest Conference. She also scored 7.3 points per game and grabbed 3.4 rebounds per contest, while shooting a solid 46.6% from the field (61 of 131). In her first three seasons, she has accumulated 426 points, 233 assists and 183 rebounds.

Carpenter is Willamette's top returning scorer. She contributed 10.0 points per game last season to rank second on the team. She was third for the Bearcats with 33 three-point baskets. Carpenter enters this year with 332 career points. 

Logsdon provided the Bearcats with 8.5 points and 4.7 rebounds per game in 2018-19. She shot 46.3% on field goals (93 of 201). She begins her senior season with 326 career points and 214 career rebounds.

Willamette faces the challenge of replacing the scoring and rebounding of Britanny Kochenderfer (Sr. in 2018-19), who averaged team-highs with 14.6 points and 10.8 rebounds per game a year ago. Kochenderfer was named Second Team All-NWC after finishing second in the NWC in rebounding and seventh in the conference in scoring. She set a Willamette record with 271 rebounds during the season.

While it's unlikely one person will match Kochenderfer's overall abilities, the Bearcats hope to combine the efforts of their returning players with the skills of four first-year players to make the transition smoother. First-year players for Willamette are Sami Riggs (G, La Verne, CA/Bonita HS), Claire Bonnet (G, Boise, ID/Boise HS), Ashlyn Ascuena-Mercil (F, Boise, ID/Timberline HS), and Ava Kitchin (Fy., Redmond, OR/Redmond HS).

Willamette Head Coach Peg Swadener is starting her eighth season with the Bearcats. She led Willamette to the NWC Tournament Championship game in 2017-18.