THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - Following a brief winter break for the Cal Lutheran women's basketball team, the Regals were back on the hardwood at the Gilbert Arena this afternoon for a non-conference tilt with UC Santa Cruz to tip-off the 2015 CLU Thousand Oaks Inn Classic. The home team walked away with a 73-52 victory, its biggest win of the season at 21 points.
Unlike the last two games, the Regals got off to a hot start, shooting 4-for-6 behind six points from Sofia Cruz in the three and a half minutes and never looked back. At 9-4 UCSC took a timeout and the Violet and Gold outscored the Banana Slugs 12-2 over the final 6:36 to build a 21-6 advantage. CLU pushed its lead to 34-15 at the break.
After the intermission, UCSC used an and-one to get back on the board, but Cal Lutheran continued to press and its defense shined while the scoring was scorching. Overall, the Regals forced 26 turnovers with 11 different players earning at least one steal and CLU converted the Slugs miscues into 25 points.
The scoring leader today was Cruz who poured in 13 points in 17 minutes. Thirteen players found the bottom of the net and the squad teamed up to shoot 38.5 percent including a third period 57.1 shooting percentage showing. Returning to the starting lineup, Trianna Owen toyed with a double-double by chipping in with eight points and a team-high six assists. Janelle Porter provided nine points off the bench on a day when the reserves contributed a total of 32. Gianna DiBacco went 2-for-3 beyond the arc for six points. In addition to her seven points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists, Chelsea Jacoby notched a pair of blocks as well.
In her Cal Lutheran debut, Rylie Wada layed one in on her first attempt and grabbed a steal while handing out an assist in four minutes of action.
Cal Lutheran (6-3) returns to action on Tuesday, Dec. 29 at 4:00 p.m. against Pacific Lutheran (Wash.). Tomorrow UCSC and PLU face off at 4:00 p.m. in a neutral site contest.
Box Score: CLU 73, UCSC 52
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