Jan. 19, 2002
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Four Broncos reached double figures as the Santa Clara University women's basketball team defeated San Diego 70-62 in West Coast Conference action tonight at the Leavey Center. With the victory, the Broncos improved to 13-4 overall, 3-1 in league play, and are undefeated at 8-0 on their home court. San Diego falls to 11-6, 2-2.
Junior forward Tammy Annas led the Broncos with 14 points, while junior forward Julie Butler and senior guard Becki Ashbaugh added 13 each. Senior guard Caroline Gruening added 11 for the Broncos.
The Toreros' Marta Menuez scored a game-high 15 points.
The Bronco defense forced the Toreros into 11 first-half turnovers as SCU hit 51.7 percent of its shots by intermission. Santa Clara led most of the first half, but saw San Diego tie the game at 24-24 with a three-pointer by Janeene Arendsen. SCU reclaimed its lead and held a five-point advantage at halftime, 34-29.
"Our offense wasn't pretty, but our defense stepped up tonight and is the reason why we won," Ashbaugh said.
Additionally, Ashbaugh hit 9-10 free throws in the second half while Gruening was 5-6 from the charity stripe to help the Broncos secure the victory.
Forwards Kendra Rhea and Jennie Rondel fouled out with about three minutes remaining in the contest.
Santa Clara continues league play and will visit Los Angeles next weekend for two contests. The Broncos will face Pepperdine on Friday, Jan. 25 at 7 p.m. at the Firestone Fieldhouse, while Loyola Marymount will hose SCU on Saturday, Jan. 26, at 7 p.m. at Gersten Pavilion.
