THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - In a game that had a slow start, the Cal Lutheran women's basketball pieced together a few runs that helped build a nine-point halftime lead before defeating Caltech 69-54 in a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) meeting with the Beavers tonight at the Gilbert Arena.
This afternoon all 11 players on the roster saw court time with Kiana Gray making her CLU debut in the second half. She scored five points in just six minutes with a pair of rebounds.
Early in the game the teams were knotted at 11-11 before Chelsea Jacoby put in a three-pointer and on the ensuing possession a turnover forced by Katy Lindor turned into a Sofia Cruz jumper and thus the momentum shifted. Just before the halftime buzzer Jacoby drained another three to give the Regals a 27-18 advantage.
Out of the break, Taylor Messick scored on three consecutive possessions to push the gap to double figures and the Violet and Gold would never look back.
On a day when everyone contributed, Jacoby, Messick and Trianna Owen each reached double figures with 14, 12 and 10, respectively, while another pair, Cruz and Haley Hodgson, had eight points apiece. Jessica Salottolo also chipped in with seven. Jacoby and Natalie Stone handed out four assists apiece.
Defensively, Messick led the team with nine rebounds, five at the offensive end, and Stone hauled in eight rebounds with a block and two steals. Hodgson would notch two blocks with six rebounds and Lindor paced the entire field with five steals.
Caltech (0-20, 0-11 SCIAC) was led by Kate Lewis with a monster double-double that included game-highs of 20 points and 18 rebounds and she also handed out five assists with a block and two steals. Both Michelle Wong and Stephanie Wong finished with 11 points for the Beavers.
Cal Lutheran (11-6, 6-2) returns to the Gilbert Arena on Wednesday, Feb. 4 for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off against Pomona-Pitzer.
Box Score: CLU 69, CIT 54
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