Jan. 15, 2005
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Junior guard Michelle Cozad tied a season-high with 21 points as the Santa Clara women's basketball team defeated Saint Mary's, 70-47 in front of 608 fans at the Leavey Center on Saturday night. The Broncos improve to 8-8 on the season and 2-1 in West Coast Conference play, while Saint Mary's drops to 9-7 overall, 1-2 in conference action.
The Broncos jumped out to a quick lead in the first half, taking a 9-1 advantage on a three-pointer from Chandice Cronk only 2:07 into the game. Prior to the three-pointer, Santa Clara had forced four turnovers and made the Gael's call a time-out. The Broncos would push their lead to nine when a three-pointer from Tracey Walker made the score 12-3 at the 15:35 mark.
A series of Bronco fouls would send the Gaels to the free throw line 24 times in the first half as Saint Mary's brought the Bronco advantage down to one point at 21-20 with 5:30 remaining in the period. Back-to-back jumpers from Cozad would push the lead back up to five points and the Broncos took a 31-26 advantage into the locker room at halftime.
Saint Mary's scored 17 of its 21 first half points from the foul line as the stifling Santa Clara defense held the Gaels to only four field goals in the half. Saint Mary's shot only 14.8% from the field in the first half and was 1-6 from beyond the arc.
In the second half, the Broncos continued to keep the Gaels at bay as they lead through out the period. The Gaels did cut the SCU lead to two points at 36-34 at the 14:49 mark, but it was the closest they would get. Santa Clara answered back with the next five points to lead 41-34 with 11:55 remaining in the contest.
Saint Mary's cut the lead to six with 8:25 remaining, but a three-pointer from Cozad seemed to shut the door on the Gael drive as SCU took a 50-41 lead. The Bronco's then took its first double-digit lead of the night at the 4:31 mark when Walker's lay-up gave SCU a 56-45 advantage. Santa Clara never looked back as it pulled away to the 23-point victory.
Quinn Thomas joined Cozad in double-digit scoring with 11 points to go along with seven steals and two blocks on the evening. Kasey Monteith led the Broncos with nine rebounds as Tori Markey grabbed eight. Kayla Huss also had a solid performance with nine points and a team-high six assists.
Triola Jackson paced the Gaels with 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Lauren Shaughnessy and Evynn Van Burger each scored eight.
The Broncos shot 43.3% from the field in the contest, while holding Saint Mary's to 23.6%.
Santa Clara will return for the second game of its three-game homestand on Thursday night. The Broncos will host Loyola Marymount in a 7:00 p.m. match-up at the Leavey Center.
