LOS ANGELES, Calif. - The Cal Lutheran women's basketball team concluded the regular season on Tuesday night with a 75-59 victory over Occidental at Rush Gymnasium.
Oxy came out hot to start the game and shot nearly fifty percent from the field as they held on to a narrow lead for much of the first half, while CLU shot just 38.2 percent to start the game, missed all seven of their three point attempts and trailed 33-29 at the break.
The game truly was a tale of two halves, as the Regals shot 57.1 percent from the field in the second half and went lights out from beyond the arc shooting 66.7 percent (6-for-9). They held the Tigers to a lowly 28.1 percent and outscored Oxy 46-26.
Tied at 47-47 with 9:48 remaining in the second half, CLU caught fire from three-point territory. After a lay-up from Sofia Cruz to break the tie, Chelsea Jacoby followed through with a trey to give the Regals a five-point lead.
After an Oxy three-pointer, Jessica Salottolo responded with a three of her own to extend the lead back to five. The Regals knocked down a series of free-throws to continue to widen their lead and Salottolo buried another three moments later to give CLU a 65-54 advantage with 3:49 to go.
The Violet and Gold outscored the Black and Orange 28-12 down the stretch due in large part to Salottolo and Jacoby catching fire from behind the arc. Gianna DiBacco capped off the scoring in the game with two free-throws to secure the win, 75-59.
Salottolo finished with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting from the field including 3-for-6 from downtown. Jacoby added 14 points and seven rebounds and Taylor Messick broke into double-figures with 10 points while pulling down eight rebounds. Natalie Stone finished withseven points, six assists and five rebounds in another strong all-around effort for the senior.
Occidental (4-21, 2-14 SCIAC) was led by Stefanie Young who went 6-for-11 from downtown and finished with 22 points.
Cal Lutheran (18-7, 13-3 SCIAC) advances to the SCIAC Tournament for the fourth straight season, and as the No. 2 seed will host Chapman at Gilbert Arena on Thursday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m.
Box Score: CLU 75, OXY 59
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