Mesa, AZ -- The women's side of the California Pacific conference tournament was introduced to the #4 seeded Warriors of Westcliff University as they defeated the 2021-22 tournament champions, #5 seeded University of California-Merced Bobcats 47-45.
The first quarter was a tale of two parts; UC Merced took an 8-2 lead, but Westcliff fought back on a 7-0 run to close the quarter up 9-8. Both teams began to settle into their offensive grooves to open the second quarter, as the Bobcats held the game even up until the seven-minute mark. Westcliff snuck away down the stretch, and entered halftime leading 24-20.
It was Trinity Vasquez who took over offensively for the Warriors, leading the game at half with 12 points on 5-12 shooting. The reigning Cal Pac Player of the Year was giving it her all, backpacking the Warriors for half their points while playing all 20 minutes in the first half.
Damilola Sule continued her scorching stretch of the Cal Pac with five points and an absurd 16 rebounds in the first half alone. Bobcat starters combined for 17 of their 20 first half points, albeit shooting just 23.3% from the field as a team.
"That was the defensive game plan, if it didn't create turnovers, fine, but if it rushed shots to create a low-percentage chance, then that was the goal," said Warriors head coach Kyle Rouse. "We worked a lot on our double teams, we worked a lot on our scramble rotations to make sure that we forced low percentage chances."
Coming out of the half, defense was the name of the game, as both squads had scoring droughts of at least five minutes in the meat of the third quarter. With two minutes to go in the quarter, the offenses came slightly alive, with the teams trading buckets twice on straight possessions. Entering the final frame, the Warriors led the reigning Cal Pac tournament champions by six.
The Warriors began to inch away from the Bobcats, extending their six point lead to a game-high 13 on a three-pointer off the bench from Polina Kovaleva. It seemed to be falling the Warriors way, but the Bobcats refused to quit, as a 10-0 run highlighted by some great defense cut the Warrior lead to three with a minute to go.
The Warriors faced opposition, but held their three-point lead late. In what became a thrilling finish, Tiffany Nguyen of the Bobcats was errantly sent to the line for three free throws after being fouled in the act of shooting with just 2.2 seconds remaining. If she hit all three free throws, it would have been a tie ballgame.
However, she missed the third, leaving the Warriors with a one-point lead, as Katie Nguyen went to the line and converted on one of her two. The Bobcats had one last shot, but Victoria Farris' shot was released just after the buzzer, bringing the curtain on a phenomenal season for UC Merced.
Vasquez had the game-high with 18, including six in the fourth quarter, in addition to six rebounds. Warriors starters combined for 42 of their 47 points, as Eva Taylor and Katie Nguyen each tacked on nine beside Vasquez.
"Just having that mindset to go after it," said Vasquez, "that mindset that nobody can stop me. The only one that can stop me is myself."
Sule dominated the glass, as she did all year, finishing with 27 total rebounds to go along with 12 points. Her 27 rebounds is a single game Cal Pac tournament record, as the Bobcats out rebounded the Warriors 49-34 in the contest.
The Warriors return to play against #1 seed University of Antelope Valley on Feb. 27, with tip off scheduled for 1 p.m.
