by FULLERTON, Calif. – The University of Denver women’s basketball team used a big second quarter on Monday night to roll past Cal State Fullerton in dominant fashion, 83-58.
DU improved to 4-3 on the season, while CSF dropped to 2-4. The team also went 3-1 this week, with other victories over Chadron State and Eastern Michigan.
Heading into the second period, the Crimson and Gold only led by one, but the team turned up the offense and jumped out on a 13-5 run over the first five minutes. Over the quarter, the Pioneers shot 60 percent (9-for-15) from the field and 62.5 percent (5-for-8) from 3-point territory.
Leading the way for Denver was Jordyn Alt and Samantha Romanowski, who each dropped in 14 points. Alt shot 60 percent (6-for-10) from field-goal range and also drained a trey. Romanowski went 57.1 percent (4-for-7) from the field and 66.7 percent (2-for-3) from behind the arc.
DU also had strong performances from Briana Johnson who chipped in 11 points, Claire Gritt with nine and Carie Weinman who scored nine points for the fourth straight game. Fellow freshman Grace White (Red Lake Nation) also performed well with a career-high eight points.
Romanowski also handed out five assists, while Johnson led the team with six rebounds.
The Crimson and Gold shot 47.6 percent (30-for-63) from the field, 47.8 percent (11-for-23) from 3 and the team shot a season best 80 percent (12-for-15) from the charity stripe. The squad also forced 22 turnovers and had 19 total assists.
After falling behind 3-0 to start the contest, the Pioneers used buckets from Gritt and Madison Nelson to secure their first lead of the game.
A Romanowski 3 put DU up by three, but CSF responded with four straight points of their own, retaking the advantage, 10-9.
With less than 15 seconds to play in the first, Lauren Loven dropped in Denver’s second trey of the contest and gave the squad the lead heading into the second.
In the second, Alt joined the 3-point party, connecting with the first shot of the period. Following suit on the next DU possession, Johnson hit the team’s fourth triple and put them up by seven, 19-12.
Over the first five minutes of the quarter, the Pioneers built a nine-point edge with a 13-5 run.
Denver continued to score at will in the second and a Johnson layup, followed by a pair of free throws from Romanowski after a technical foul on Fullerton’s Carolyn Gill gave the Pioneers a 40-24 lead.
The Titans Lauren Nubla made a halftime buzzer-beater but the Crimson and Gold still led by 14 at the break.
Leading the way for the Pioneers in the first half was Romanowski who scored 12 points, shooting 60 percent (3-for-5) from the field and 66.7 percent (2-for-3) from behind the arc. As a team, Denver went 45.2 percent (14-for-31) from field-goal range and 58.3 percent (7-for-12) from 3-point range.
Into the third, the DU offense kept it rolling and an old fashion three-point play from White gave them a 16-point advantage.
A short Alt jumper put the Pioneers up by 20 with two and a half minutes to play in the period. Fullerton answered with a two of its own, but Johnson responded with her third trey of the game, 59-38.
The Titans refused to go away, cutting the DU edge to 14 with eight minutes left in the contest.
Despite the attempted comeback, Denver kept focused and a short Alt jumper off an assist from Romanowski returned the margin to 18.
CSF failed to get any closer, as the Pioneers shut the door on any hopes for a comeback.
The team returns to Denver to take on Colorado State on Thursday at 7 p.m. MT.
