LA VERNE, Calif. – Cal Lutheran women's basketball endured a tough night offensively, falling 64-56 at La Verne on Wednesday.

The loss drops the Regals to 19-4 overall and 11-3 in SCIAC play, while the Leopards improve to 6-16 (2-10 SCIAC).

The Purple & Gold struggled to find rhythm from the opening tip and was unable to secure a lead in the contest. La Verne jumped out to a 17-9 advantage after the first quarter as the Regals shot just 3-for-20 in the period.

Cal Lu trimmed the deficit to seven on multiple occasions in the second quarter behind interior buckets from Kaiya Mack and Devyn Berry, but the Leopards maintained control and carried a 32-25 lead into halftime.

Kaitlyn Brongiel scored to open the third and cut the margin to five, but La Verne responded with another offensive stretch to push the lead back to double digits. The Regals managed just 2-for-16 shooting in the quarter, and the deficit grew to 46-34 heading into the final frame.

Cal Lutheran showed fight in the fourth, shooting 43.8 percent and scoring 22 points in the period. Natalie Villamor knocked down a three to pull within eight midway through the quarter, and Anna Sherman added nine fourth-quarter points, including a late triple, but the Regals couldn't get any closer than eight down the stretch.

Sherman led CLU with 14 points off the bench on 5-of-9 shooting, including 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. Mack added 10 points and four steals, while Janna Holley finished with eight points and five assists. Villamor also scored eight, and Brongiel chipped in seven points and six boards.

As a team, the Regals shot 29.2 percent from the field and 19.0 percent from three-point range. La Verne shot 41.2 percent and converted 17-of-20 at the free-throw line.

Cal Lutheran returns home on Wednesday, February 18, to host Pomona-Pitzer at 7 p.m. inside Gilbert Arena. The Regals earned a 63-55 road win over the Sagehens earlier this season.