Jan. 10, 2009
SAN DIEGO - Lena Gipson registered her 11th double-double of the season with 11 points and 14 rebounds as the Santa Clara women's basketball team fell 67-54 at San Diego Saturday afternoon. Sara Majors also had 11 points, while Rhianna Faithfull added 10 points.
The scoring was nearly tied as USD shot 34.9% to SCU's 34.5% from the field. The Broncos made seven of their 14 three-point field goal attempts, while the Toreros led the rebounding efforts 43 to 40.
The score was tied four times and the lead changed on three occasions but the Broncos rallied back from a six point deficit to head into the second half with a 33-22 lead. It's just the second time this season that Santa Clara held the advantage at the end of the first 20 minutes. Faithfull led the squad with 10 points that included two three-pointers. Gipson helped with the boards as she had a half-high eight rebounds.
Kiva Herman put the Toreros on the scoreboard first, 2-0, but Gipson responded with a layup to tie the score. However, two sets of free throws from Amber Sprague and Emily Hatch gave San Diego a 6-2 edge. The Broncos brought the score within two-points twice and a layup from Majors knotted the score, 8-8. Yet, the Toreros pulled ahead six points, 14-8, holding the Broncos quiet for just under three and a half minutes. The silence was broken by made free throws from Majors.
The free shots ignited a 9-2 run from Santa Clara that tied the score and gave the Broncos a one-point edge, 17-16. Kathy Willinsky knotted the score, 14-14, with a layup at 9:07 and a trey from Alyssa Shoji gave SCU the lead. Although the Toreros took the lead with a deuce from Emily Hatch, 18-17, Brittany Purvis reclaimed the lead with her first three-pointer of the season, 20-18. Purvis' shot started a 16-4 run that ended the half, 33-22.
A jumper from Gipson and another three-pointer from Shoji gave Santa Clara a 13-point lead to start the second half, 38-25. However, San Diego came back out recharged and followed with a 16-3 run to tie the score, 41-41, with 11:16 to play. The Toreros never looked back as they claimed a 14-point lead, 63-49, with just under a minute left in the game. The Broncos sustained themselves on free throws and jumpers from Majors, but the Toreros took the game, 67-54, on free throws from Dominique Conners and Kelly Winther.
For San Diego, Herman led the game with 20 points, while Hatch had a game-high 15 rebounds. Conners added 16 points and Sprague had 10 points and eight rebounds.
The Broncos return to action on Thursday, Jan. 15 against the Bulldogs of Gonzaga. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Leavey Center. The game will be televised nationally on CBS College Sports.