By John McCarty, Staff Writer -- mccarty12@up.edu
Following a pair of wins over West Coast Conference opponents Loyola Marymount and Pepperdine, the women's basketball team heads to California this week to face off against the University of San Fransisco and Santa Clara.
The Pilots held out against the Pepperdine Waves to win 78-73 in double overtime before dealing the LMU Lions another loss 78-69. These two wins bring the Pilots to 5-5 in conference and 14-11 overall.
Though the Pilots were picked to place fifth in the WCC by a preseason coaches poll, Head Coach Jim Sollars hopes to lead the women to their third straight postseason appearance.
"A strong performance is all we can really be concerned about right now," Sollars said. "We don't really control our fate in the WCC but if we win out we will be somewhere between fourth and second."
The Pilots remained in control throughout Saturday's bout with the LMU Lions, maintaining the lead for 39 of the 40 regulation minutes. Junior forward/guard Natalie Day garnered two double-doubles to bring her career total to four with 26 points and 10 rebounds against the Lions and 23 points and 16 rebounds against the Waves.
Senior guard Tara Cronin earned the second double-double of her career against the Waves with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
"I'm very happy with our team after these huge wins in the upper half of the conference," Cronin said. "We stuck with it and battled through and showed our best on the boards."
Sollars echoed Cronin's sentiments and acknowledged that UP out-rebounded both LMU and Pepperdine which, according to Sollars, was a main factor in each win.
"We had a lot of people show up tonight and that's what we needed, especially since we are essentially playing with four guards and a post," Sollars said.
Cronin, Day, freshman guard Alexis Byrd and junior guard ReZina TecleMariam totaled 12 three-pointers against the Lions, tying the team record for most three-pointers during a game for the third time this season.
TecleMariam led the Pilots with a game high of six assists while Cronin and Byrd contributed 19 and 12 points, respectively.
Though the Pilots led the entire game against LMU, their Thursday night battle with No. 2 Pepperdine was a much different story. As the final minute of regulation play was winding down, the Pilots, ahead 67-64, seemed assured of a win.
Everything changed when Day missed the first of a one-and-one free throw.
Pepperdine's Jasmine Jackson snatched the rebound and heaved the ball up court for a last ditch three-pointer before she was fouled in the final seconds of the half.
Amid the murmurs of unbelieving fans, Jackson made all three of her free throws, sending the game into overtime.
Tied at 67, the Pilots and Waves exchanged four points apiece but were unable to break the deadlocked score due to missed shots and turnovers on both sides. Pepperdine pulled ahead with a lay-up early in the second overtime before Day sunk a two-pointer from the lane and was fouled.
After Day converted the and-one, the Pilots were up 74-73. Senior forward Lauren Angel helped seal the Waves' fate, making both her free throws after being fouled on a rebound. TecleMariam was also fouled in the waning seconds of the game and sunk both of her free throws for a final score of 78-73.
"I sort of feel like we played with them at first. We missed some key free throws and jumpers and also got into some foul trouble, but I'm proud that we were able to persevere and get the win," Day said.
The Pilots currently sit in the middle of the WCC pack, below Gonzaga (10-0), Saint Mary's (8-3) and Pepperdine (6-5).
With four regular season games left, including the final home game against St. Mary's, who beat the Pilots 76-78, the women hope to make an appearance in the WCC championships, which begin March 4 in Las Vegas.
