Jan. 30, 2008
PORTLAND, Ore. - Chandice Cronk's three-point goal with five seconds remaining gave the Santa Clara women's basketball team a 61-58 victory over Portland Wednesday night at the Chiles Center. The win was the Broncos fifth straight and they are now 5-1 in the West Coast Conference and 16-4 on the season, while the Pilots dropped to 2-4 in league play and 12-9 overall.
Cronk, the reigning WCC Player of the Week, led all players with 25 points and registered three three-point goals in the final two minutes of play to help the Broncos to victory. Senior Jen Gottschalk added 14 points and eight rebounds. Two of Santa Clara's Oregonians had a successful homecoming as Corvallis native Elizabeth Doran tallied eight key points in the first half, going 2-for-2 from beyond the arc, and Aumsville native Sara Majors pulled down seven rebounds and had two assists.
A shot from Cronk just shy of the arc knotted the score, 2-2, in the opening minutes of the game. However, it was quite the battle in the first half as the score was tied eight times, with the Broncos tying the score six of those times. The Pilot grabbed a four-point edge, 8-4, on a jumper from Allyson Sievers but a three-pointer from Doran brought Santa Clara within one point, 8-7, with 13:11 left in the half. Doran compiled five straight points for the Broncos to tie the score and give Santa Clara its first least of the night, 14-12. Yet, Portland created another four-point advantage, 26-22, with 3:10 left. The Broncos rallied back with under a minute left to tie the score, 27-27, going into halftime.
The Pilots gained control of the scoreboard in the second half, jumping to a five point lead on three different occasions. A jumper from Majors brought the Broncos within one point, 44-43, with 10:07 remaining. Yet, SCU could not tie the score. Three minutes later, Cronk brought SCU within one point again, 46-45, but it wasn't until a three-point goal from Gottschalk that tied the score, 48-48. The Pilot widened the score to four-points, 51-48, but a trey from Tracey Walker knotted the score once again, 51-51. The Broncos then went on to score 10 points in the final minutes, including a triplet of treys from Cronk that gave SCU a final score of 61-58.
For the Pilots, Sievers had 17 points and eight rebounds, while Laiken Dollente chipped in with 13 points and Rachel Warren added 10 points.
The Broncos return to action on Saturday, Feb. 2 against the Bulldogs of Gonzaga. Tip off is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the McCarthey Center in Spokane, Wash.