Gonzaga women advance again to Sweet 16 as an 11 seed

Gonzaga's Elle Tinkle joins her teammates in celebrating a 76-64 win over Oregon State in a college basketball game in the second round of the NCAA women's tournament in Corvallis, Ore., Sunday, March 22, 2015. (AP Photo/Timothy J. Gonzalez) Gonzaga's Elle Tinkle joins her teammates in celebrating a 76-64 win over Oregon State in a college basketball game in the second round of the NCAA women's tournament in Corvallis, Ore., Sunday, March 22, 2015. (AP Photo/Timothy J. Gonzalez)

By Associated Press March 23, 2015 5 min read

It seems 11 is the perfect number for Gonzaga.

The Zags advanced to the Sweet 16 on Sunday for the third time in five years as a No. 11 seed. Now the Bulldogs get to go home to Spokane to play in a regional 3 miles from their campus.

The possible homecoming was one of Gonzaga coach Lisa Fortier’s points of emphasis.

“Lisa said it before the game: ‘We’re capable, we can do this, and if we do it, we’re coming right back home and we’re playing where we’re comfortable,'” said Elle Tinkle, who added 14 points and seven rebounds. “It will be nice having a little home-court help for sure.”

Gonzaga isn’t the only surprise to the regional semifinals. Dayton upset Kentucky on its home-court earning Jim Jabir and his team their first trip to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament.