by LAIE, Hawaii – BYU-Hawaii women’s basketball fell to California Baptist University 87-53 in a physical battle on Saturday night in the Cannon Activities Center.
Celeste Claw (Navajo Nation) led the Seasiders (12-7, 9-4 PacWest) with 14 points, nine assists and four rebounds. Brydgette Tatupu-Leopoldo contributed 12 points, four assists and three rebounds. Marquessa Gilson added nine points and four rebounds and Mata Tonga finished with six points and nine rebounds.
BYU-Hawaii shot 80 percent from the free throw line while Cal Baptist (17-3, 10-2 PacWest) hit 68.8 percent. The Seasiders had 20 turnovers, while the Lancers took care of the ball committing only 11 turnovers.
Cal Baptist took the lead early in the game, but an individual, five-point run by Gilson closed the gap and made it a 13-10 game with 13:53 in the first half.
Cal Baptist went on a 7-0 run, giving them a 10-point lead with 9:51 on the clock. The Seasiders answered back with a 13-2 run featuring three 3-pointers from Tatupu-Leopoldo and Claw to take the 27-26 lead with 5:59 left in the half.
From then on the Lancers took control going on a 14-point run to put BYU-Hawaii behind 40-27 in the last two minutes of the half.
A jump shot by Gilson in the first minutes of the second half stopped the Cal Baptist seven-point run, making it a 49-33 game in favor of the Lancers.
The teams began the seesaw scoring until the Lancers went on a 6-0 run. A 3-pointer by Claw and jump shot by Kjirsten Nelson stopped Cal Baptist’s nine-point run to bring the game to 76-47 with 4:36 on the clock. The Seasiders never threatened in the second half.
BYU-Hawaii heads to Chaminade on Thursday to take on their rivals in Honolulu. Live stats will be available online.
