SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. – Abby Ellis' jumper with 1.2 seconds left in the game proved to be the difference as Santa Clara women's basketball fell at Cal Poly 57-56 in a nail-biter Monday afternoon.

After Ellis put the Mustangs (2-1) on top, a timeout moved the ball to half court for the Broncos (1-1). Ashlyn Herlihy, one of three Santa Clara players in double figures, took the final shot but it was blocked by Sierra Campisano.

Ellis and Campisano did the heavy lifting for Cal Poly, scoring 18 and 14 points, respectively. Ellis was 6-of-12 from the field and added a pair of 3-pointers while also adding four rebounds, two steals, and two assists. Campisano scored 14 on 7-of-16 shooting and grabbed a team high seven rebounds to go with four blocked shots, including the game saver.

The Broncos had their chances but a frigid fourth quarter was too much to overcome. Santa Clara was 1-for-11 from the field during the final period and didn't connect from the floor after Herlihy's 3-pointer with 8:02 to go tied the game at 51-all. 

Before the cold streak sunk the Broncos overall shooting line to just 32.7-percent for the game, they got hot from behind the arc midway through the third and scored four consecutive baskets from downtown. Bryce Nixon and Merle Wiehl each connected on one with Lindsey VanAllen finding the bottom of the net twice. The stretch got the team within one after being down as many as eight in the half.

Nixon led the Broncos with a career high 11 points and knocked down three from beyond the arc. Herlihy and VanAllen both scored 10 with eight and six boards respectively. Lexie Pritchard added nine points and Wiehl scored eight with six rebounds.

Cal Poly turned the tide in the second quarter by opening on a 10-2 run to take a one-point lead. Later in the period, the Mustangs rattled off 11 in a row to stretch their lead out to 32-25 and would head into the locker room up 34-28.

After the big second for Cal Poly, Santa Clara's defense stepped things up in the second half, allowing the Mustangs to shoot just 10-for-32 over the final 20 minutes after they had gone 14-for-28 in the first half.

Despite the rough finish, things started out well for Santa Clara, who held an 18-11 lead after one quarter thanks to a 9-2 run over the final 3:52, capped by five in a row from Nixon.

UP NEXT
The Broncos and Mustangs play again Tuesday at 3 p.m.

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