WCC Championships Central

LAS VEGAS – In the quarterfinals of the West Coast Conference Tournament, sixth-seeded Santa Clara women's basketball fell to third-seeded Saint Mary's 60-57 Thursday night. The Broncos had two good looks on the final possession to win it but couldn't connect. This was the seventh game of the season that has come down to the final possession for Santa Clara with the Broncos dropping all seven.

"Tonight was a really good college basketball game that could have gone either way," Santa Clara head coach Bill Carr said. "Both teams made runs. I was hoping we would make another one but it came down to the last possession. This is why you coach and play in college. What a great game."

After a pair of free throws for Devyn Galland with 26 seconds to go, Santa Clara (14-16, 9-9 WCC) got the ball at midcourt down 60-57. The Broncos grabbed an offensive rebound on a missed shot and Taylor Berry had a good look at a 3-pointer but it was off the mark. Another rebound got Emily Wolph, the conference's leading 3-point shooter, a look to tie the game but hers' was also off the mark.

"Emily is an amazing 3-pointer shooter and if anyone is going to take that shot, we're counting on her," said Santa Clara senior Marie Bertholdt. "We had a good chance but it ended up not going in. That's how it goes."

Sydney Raggio scored six-straight points for Saint Mary's (19-11, 13-5 WCC) as the two teams went back and forth with the lead in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. Her third layup came with 1:50 on the clock and gave the Gales a 58-57 lead after Morgan McGwire's layup had given Santa Clara a lead moments earlier.

Raggio led all scorers with 19 points and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds. Galland scored 11 and was 3-for-6 from behind the arc while Megan McKay scored 10 with seven rebounds.

The Gaels came out of the locker room and scored the first nine points of the second half to tie the game at 32-all.  It took the Broncos over three minutes to get their first shot attempt and three and a half minutes for their first bucket.

"They came out aggressive and we were a step behind," Bertholdt said. "They switched up their rotations on offense and it led to us scrambling. They got open shots and we became tentative on the offensive end."

An 11-0 run for Santa Clara early in the second quarter got the lead to 24-14. Wolph had two 3-pointers and Lori Parkinson had one to lead the way. Parkinson's came as the shot clock expired and forced a Gaels' timeout.

Wolph led the Broncos with 16 points and was 4-for-6 from beyond the arc. McGwire added nine points and seven boards.

Bertholdt scored 12 with five rebounds and fellow senior Parkinson scored seven and had five rebounds.

"We're going to miss Marie and Lori a ton," Carr said. "They've meant so much to this program and me in my first year. They're leaving a huge legacy. You want the young kids in the program to see what they've done for us."

After losing to the Gales 73-58 five days ago, the Broncos came out with a renewed energy and kept their fight all game.

"What you saw tonight was who we are," Carr said. "The fight on that last possession to get those rebounds, that's who we are. We kept fighting. There was never any quit. That's a really good sign for this program going forward."

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