Westmont women’s basketball advances in PacWest Tournament

SAN RAFAEL, Calif. - Five Warrior players scored in double figures as Westmont Women's Basketball (18-10) posted a 70-54 win over the Sunbirds of Fresno Pacific (14-14) to advance to the semifinals of the PacWest Championship.

"One of our biggest strengths has been depth," said Westmont's veteran head coach Kirsten Moore. "I was grateful to have some of our players back today who have been out with injury. They were pushing through. So, I think our depth was able to come to fruition. This has always been the vision and the goal, but it was nice to see that play out in what is the most important game of the year so far here in the postseason.

"I do think that we have a lot of weapons on both ends of the floor and I think in an ideal world, we are hard to guard. It is not just one or two players our opponents have to stop. We have a lot of different weapons we can use and it was fun to see a lot of people involved today.

Noemie Bariteau led the Warriors in scoring with 16 points, making four of five from 3-point range. Bailey Fong, Molly Garnand and Lisa Kiefer each added 12 points with Kiefer recording a double-double with 12 rebounds. She also had four assists, two steals, and two blocks.

"It was hard sitting out, and this first game back being such an important game - it's do or die," said Kiefer who did not play in Saturday's game at Point Loma. "I had so much support from my teammates and my coaches to build my confidence and encourage me. I had easy layups because my teammates were aggressive and attacked the rim so my defender had to help. A lot of it is my teammates doing the work."

Garnand added seven rebounds, two assists and two steals to her dozen points while Fong had three steals and two rebounds.

Sage Kramer tallied 11 points and nine rebounds in the Warrior victory.

"I think our team culture is hugely important to us," said sophomore guard Molly Garnand. "Coach Moore is more concerned with us as humans than as basketball players and that shows on the basketball court. The way that we are able to treat each other and love each other makes us play better together.

"If you can foster a great culture where no one cares who is getting the buckets - no one cares who is getting the glory - that shows on the stat sheet too. When you have five players in double figures, our culture was there tonight and we were there for each other."

As a team, the Warriors outrebounded the Sunbirds 46-25.

"Rebounding is something Coach Moore values and is something that is drilled into our brains," expressed Garnand. "Obviously, we have an advantage with length inside and we want to use that, but it comes down to grit and toughness and excitement for the game."

It was a seesaw battle in the first quarter with Westmont holding a slight lead in the early going. However, Fresno Pacific closed out the opening frame on a 12-3 run to take a 19-13 advantage into the second quarter.

"It is our first game ever in the postseason," said Kiefer, referring to Westmont's NCAA DII postseason eligibility. "In the beginning, we were feeling it out and trying to find our rhythm. I think we did that well in the first quarter. Then, there was a moment where they started to come back and started to lead.

"That is where we showed some growth from this season. We have had games where the other team is on a run and let that determine how we play. We have grown from that, now, and know we need to fight back. Even if we have good stretches, we know we have to continue. In tournament time, we know everyone can go on runs. So, we have to stay consistent."

Westmont rallied and quickly regained momentum, tying the game at 22 points apiece with 7:50 to play in the second quarter. The firepower came from an 'and-one' layup by Fong, a pair of layups by Kramer, and a couple of free throws from Jazmyn Shipp.

Down 24-22, Westmont produced a 13-3 run to close out the half. The run consisted of two free throws from Kiefer, a triple and a jumper by Bariteau, two free throws by Brown and a jumper by Garnand. That gave Westmont a 35-27 halftime lead.

In the third quarter, the Warriors picked up where they left off, producing a 12-3 run on four layups by Kiefer, and buckets from Garnand and Fong. As a result, Westmont led 47-30 midway through the penultimate period.

The Sunbirds whittled the margin to within nine (50-41) when Joleen Corona dropped in a trey. However, Bariteau responded in kind on the next possession to give the Warriors a 53-41 lead at the end of the third period. Fresno Pacific did not come within single digits again.

Westmont took its largest lead with four and one-half minutes remaining in regulation with another 3-pointer by Bariteau that made the score 65-44.

Helping distribute the ball for the Warriors was point guard Mariah Brown who produced nine assists and five rebounds.

"She was getting everyone involved and I thought she had an incredible game for us," said Moore.

Westmont advances to take on top-seeded Point Loma (23-5) tomorrow (Thursday) at 2:45 p.m.

"A week ago, we played Point Loma on their senior night," pointed out Moore. "They are, obviously, an incredibly talented team – an incredibly good, efficient team with a lot of weapons. They won the league for a reason.

"We know we are the underdogs, but we also have a lot of belief in how we can match up. They were able to beat us both times we played them this year. I think we have continued to grow and hopefully can put it together tomorrow and give them a real battle. We certainly have to believe in ourselves and I think that we do with the work that we have put in. We also have nothing to lose and can go out there and go for it."

(Article courtesy of Westmont Athletics).