The Bear Cubs’ women’s basketball squad got the win at home in front of a big crowd after a great second half against the Sierra College Wolverines Feb. 10.
SRJC Women’s basketball now has a one-game lead in the Big 8 conference with the victory over Sierra College.
The first two quarters were tightly contested, with the ending of the first and second quarters leaving the game at only a one-point difference. Santa Rosa slowly built its lead as the game progressed, with the first quarter ending 21-20. The next quarter, SRJC was up by one with a score of 36-35.
Sierra College had a few star performers who looked especially impressive in the first half, with guards Julianna Chavez and Alyssa Premo both having good games offensively, scoring 17 and 14 points, respectively.
Santa Rosa’s standout players performed well in the first half, but took over the game in the second half; guards Lucca Lowenberg and Ciarah Michalik finished the night with 22 and 16 points, respectively.
Santa Rosa Head Coach Lacey Campbell pointed to an improvement on both ends as the key to them pulling away in the second half. “The second half we were able to string stops together and execute on the offensive side a little better,” she said. “But overall, our defense came in clutch.”
The second half started with Sierra College Head Coach Brandie Murrish getting a technical call against her for excessive complaining to the referee.
The game got a bit more scrappy as time progressed, with the third quarter being particularly spirited and many more fouls coming than in the first half.
The third quarter ended with the Bear Cubs improving their lead to 53-47.
In the fourth quarter, guard Alex Ditizio went down after what appeared to be an injury to the face, but after checking back in later in the quarter, she quickly put up 8 points and looked the best she did all game.
“Alex is a tough kid and has proven that all year,” Coach Campbell said. “She is a huge spark to our team, and we love having her on the floor.”
Lowenberg drew three and-one calls and proceeded to convert all of them as she led the charge for SRJC’s late game takeover.
The game ended in a massive victory as the Bear Cubs extended their third-quarter lead three-fold, with the final score of 78-59. “That was a complete team win, I am proud of them as a whole!” Coach Campbell said.
