SRJC 64, Cosumnes River College 56

             For their third Big 8 road game in a row, the Bear Cubs (5-7, 1-2) drove through the rain to Sacramento to face the Hawks (5-10, 1-2) of Cosumnes River College. Both teams committed turnovers in their first possessions and then missed open shots. Shayla Newman drew a shooting foul 2:22 into the contest and made the second free throw. Eight seconds later Brookelyn Larkin's drive got the Hawks on the scoreboard. A single Hawk free throw with 6:22 on the clock gave the hosts a 3-1 lead. Successful inside shots by Jasmine Henderson and Madeline Strom put the Bear Cubs ahead 5-3 at the 4:34 mark. Arionna Butts' 15-footer tied the score with 3:28 left. One free throw by Jasmine Henderson followed by her 2-footer put the Bear Cubs up 8-5. Butts' 3-pointer with 2:15 remaining again tied the score. Twenty seconds later Strom caught a pass from Lilly Orozco a foot from the basket and sank the shot. A minute later Orozco scored the final points of the quarter on a reverse layup, making the Bear Cubs' lead 12-8.

             Shayla Newman put in the first basket of the second quarter one minute in as she drove from the left side of the hoop and banked in the shot from the right side. Two possessions later, Newman sank a 2-footer. With 7:37 on the clock Sophie Kupu was fouled on a 3-point attempt. She made the first and third free throws. Twenty-seven seconds later Lizeth Zavala hustled after an offensive rebound and eventually put in a 5-footer. Jasmine Henderson's scoring drive at the 5:50 mark widened the lead to 20-10. Larkin drew a shooting foul with 3:36 left and made both free throws. Newman's 4-footer with 3:18 remaining accounted for the Bear Cubs' final points of the period. The Hawks took advantage of the Bear Cubs' turnovers and missed shots, as they scored a layup, a 2-footer, and two free throws to cut the Bear Cubs' lead to 22-18 going into halftime.

            The Hawks started the third quarter with the ball and Butts drained a deep 3-pointer. Jasmine Henderson scored consecutive layups to get to 26-21. Butts sank a pull-up jumper with 8:00 on the clock and another 70 seconds later to pull her team within a point at 25-26. Cammie Barsuglia hit a short shot, and then Larkin's 3-pointer tied the score at 28 with 6:16 left. Larkin's two free throws on their next time down put them in front. Maiya Flores' two out of three free throws a minute later tied the score. Shayla Newman made consecutive baskets down low. Larkin drained a 15-footer with 2:33 left. Lizeth Zavala's field goal with 1:36 remaining completed the scoring in the quarter with the Bear Cubs in front 36-32.

            Larkin made one of two free throws in the opening minute of the fourth quarter. Twenty-five seconds later Britta Irvine passed to a wide open Maiya Flores, who had made a sharp backdoor cut to the basket and then sank the layup. Following a 2-pointer by Larkin, Madeline Strom made two 1-footers for a 42-35 margin with 7:26 on the clock. Butts sank a contested 14-footer at the 5:54 mark. Flores swished her only 3-pointer 18 seconds later. Butts then hit her third 3-pointer. Lilly Orozco's field goal with 4:56 left was answered by Butts' within 24 seconds. One free throw by Flores and two by Newman put the Bear Cubs ahead 50-42 with 4:02 to go. Larkin buried a 3-pointer, and then Britta Irvine did the same. Butts made another 14-footer, and Newman scored the Bear Cubs' last basket and shot attempt of the game with 2:17 remaining, putting the lead at 55-47. Butts scored another field goal. The Bear Cubs committed a turnover. The Hawks missed a shot, and DJ Hayes was fouled as she was grabbing the rebound with 1:35 on the clock. She made both free throws. After a Hawks' missed shot, Newman was fouled with 1:10 left and made both free throws. Larkin quickly sank a 3-pointer. Jasmine Henderson was fouled and made the second free throw. The Hawks' next shot bounced off the rim, Irvine controlled the rebound, was fouled, and made both free throws. Maiya Flores was fouled 10 seconds later and also made both free throws for a 64-52 advantage. With 26 seconds remaining, Larkin completed a 4-point play after sinking her third 3-pointer. The Bear Cubs missed two more free throws and eventually dribbled out the clock on the 64-56 win.

            The Bear Cubs made only 10 out of 28 shots (36%) in the first half, but were better in the second half, as they made 13 out of 26 (50%). After only making two out of five free throws in the first half, they took 25 in the second and made 14 (56%), which was enough to hold off the Hawks. The Hawks were more accurate from the line, making 12 out of 17 (71%). Out of their team's 56 points Brookelyn Larkin scored 28 and Arionna Butts 23.

            All nine of the Bear Cubs scored and grabbed at least two rebounds. Shayla Newman led the team with her fifth double-double, scoring 17 points and pulling down 11 rebounds. Jasmine Henderson made 5 out of 7 shots and two free throws to total 12 points. Maiya Flores had an off-shooting night but still tallied 10 points. Madeline Strom made all four of her shots for 8 points. Britta Irvine added 5 points, Lizeth Zavala and Lilly Orozco 4 each, and DJ Hayes and Cammie Barsuglia each scored 2 points. Irvine and Strom each had 6 rebounds. Irvine passed for 4 assists, and Flores came up with 4 steals.