CC Flaherty
Staff Writer
The women’s basketball team put up a good fight against the Caltech Beavers on Saturday at Frantz Athletic Court but fell short in the end, losing 71-68. The energy and high level play was consistent throughout the game and it became physical between these two teams as they matched up for the last time this season.
La Verne held the lead throughout the first half, shooting 50% from field goal range and 40% from 3-point range. With the score 16-10 at the end of the first quarter, the Leopards took advantage of every opportunity by playing scrappy, aggressive defense. This put stress on Caltech’s offense, causing miscommunications that led to turnovers. The Leopards had 10 points off of Caltech’s turnovers in the first quarter.
The La Verne bench was a huge factor in the first half with nine out of the 18 points being scored was from players off the bench for La Verne compared to two of the 12 points being from Caltech’s bench.
“I think for today, it’s going to be important for our players off the bench to give us good focused minutes.” head coach Anthony Mason said.
The Leopards continued to be aggressive from the 3-point line in the second quarter. They had great ball movement and a pass-cut-focused offense and used their screen method strategically. La Verne’s defense kept Caltech shooting only 33% in the first half and the Leopards went into halftime leading, 34-22.
Senior guard Marissa Howell had 16 points and three 3-pointers.
“I try not to look at any games as any pressure,” Howell said. “Because at the end of the day we go out there to have fun and try to remember that I am supposed to be out there having fun. Win or lose, I am just going to try my hardest.”
The Beavers came out ready to fight in the second half. The score became closer as the Beavers were making more of their 3-point shots and driving in the paint to get fouled. Caltech outscored the Leopards in the third quarter, 19-15. The Beavers’ defense held La Verne to just 28% shooting from the paint and 22% from the three.
“At this point in the season, we are looking at our mistakes and working on cleaning it up. Along with how to execute better down the stretch,” Mason said.
As the clock counted down, the fourth quarter was one to remember. The Beavers kept their offensive rhythm going by shooting 73% from the field goal range along with 100% from the 3-point line.
The Leopards didn’t back down, especially sophomore forward Alyssa Smith, with assists from junior guard Christen Ziska and Howell.
Both Ziska and Howell contributed with strong shooting from the floor and with staying aggressive and driving in to get fouled. Their free throw shooting helped keep them neck-and-neck with the Beavers.
However, it was not enough as a late surge gave Caltech the win, 71-68.
“The team’s mindset is to go out there and compete to the best of our ability and let the results take care of themselves,” Mason said.
The loss makes La Verne’s record 7-16 overall and 4-11 in Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play.
The Leopards will take on the Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens at 2 p.m. Saturday at Frantz Athletic Court for their senior night.
CC Flaherty can be reached at catherine.flaherty@laverne.edu.
CC Flaherty is a staff photographer for the Campus Times and La Verne Magazine, and a junior communications major with a concentration in public relations. She is also a broadcast announcer for La Verne Athletics and has previously been a staff writer for the Campus Times.
