Los Angeles, CA — Women's hoops hosted the University of Redlands Bulldogs in Rush Gym on Saturday afternoon.
THe Bulldogs came into the contest with a 9-8 overall record and a 4-4 SCIAC record, while the Tigers were 9-6 overall and 4-2 in the SCIAC heading into the game.
Oxy scored the first 3 baskets of the game, two of which came from Paige Yasukochi to open the game with a 6-0 scoring run. The Bulldogs got their shots to start falling and would hold a 14-9 lead after the 1st quarter of play.
The Tigers started working their way into the paint often in the 2nd quarter and putting pressure on the Bulldog offense with a full court press that created a few turnovers.
Oxy was able to out shoot the Bulldogs in the 1st half with a 46.7% field goal percentage and also hold the lead for a total of 11 minutes and 52 seconds. The Bulldogs would use the 3-ball to stay in the game, and Redlands trailed only by 2 points at the end of the 1st half.
The game remained close throughout the 3rd quarter, but Oxy put together a strong run to end the frame.
Megan Delgado had a strong cut to the basket that she finished off with a made jumper with under a minute to play left in the quarter.
After a Bulldog turnover, the Tigers had the ball for the last possession of the 3rd and Ainsley Shelsta cashed in on an opportunity in the paint, extending the Oxy lead to 58-50 heading into the 4th and final quarter.
Redlands quickly committed three fouls to start the 4th quarter, putting their defense on their toes for the remainder of the game. The Tigers took advantage and worked their way into the paint more often.
Oxy was up with 7 minutes to play but the Bulldogs put together a run to get back into the game and only trailed 62-60 with under 5 minutes to play in the game.
Up 4 in the last minute of the 4th quarter, Oxy committed a foul that sent a Redlands player off the line where they knocked down both to get the lead down to two. On the last play of regulation a Bulldog player went up for the game-tying shot and drew a foul on the play, and eventually made both free throws to send the game to overtime.
In OT, the Tigers took a 3-point lead after Dominique Cabading knocked down a big three-ball. After securing a stop on the defensive end, Ainsley Shelsta was fouled on the way up and made both free throws to extend the lead to five points with 1:44 to play.
Oxy would secure another big stop and seal the game at the free throw line, winning by a score of 78-71. Oxy is now 5-2 in SCIAC Play and 10-6 overall.
BY THE NUMBERS
Paige Yasukochi led the Tigers with 22 points, followed by 18 points from Ainsley Shelsta and 14 from Michelle-Lagunas Monroy.
Oxy out shot Redlands, shooting 46.3% from the field to the Bulldogs' 36.2%. Although the game was close with 6 ties and 6 lead changes, the Tigers controlled the lead for 34:21 of the game.
Cabading has the game high with 8 assists, consistently finding open teammates for scores.
UP NEXT
Women's basketball's next match up is the rescheduled game from 1/8 against the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Athenas. The game will now be played on January 27th at 7pm in Claremont, CA.
