AZUSA, Calif. - Right when things looked at their worst, Point Loma was at its best. Azusa Pacific's Miriam Zabinsky hit a 3-pointer from the corner with 12 seconds left to force overtime, snapping a lead PLNU had held since early in the first half, but the Sea Lions responded valiantly in the extra period to outscore the Cougars 13-2 and come home with the 68-57 victory (Jan. 21).
 
Point Loma (9-8) has now won five straight Pacific West Conference games and moved into sole possession of fourth place at 7-3. The loss broke a tie between Azusa Pacific (10-7) and PLNU in the conference standings. APU fell back to sixth place, a half-game behind the Academy of Art (11-6, 6-3 PacWest).
 
Roya Rustamzada was at her best overtime as she scored 11 of the Sea Lions 13 points. The freshman from Temecula, Calif. (Great Oak High School) showed her offensive versatility in the extra period; scoring two layups, hitting a contested 3-pointer and sinking all four free throw attempts. She even added four rebounds, bringing her team-leading total to nine for the game.
 
Rustamzada (13) was joined in double-figures by Sydney Tonack (14), Madison West (13) and Jessica Escorza (12). Escorza matched Rustamzada for the team-lead with nine boards, and added four assists.
 
APU managed to make more baskets (23-20) and outrebound PLNU (51-40), but the Sea Lions overcame this by making 21-of-23 free throws and holding the Cougars to 17 percent shooting from beyond the arc (5-of-30).
 
"We got off to slow starts to begin the game and the second half, but I think we thrive on being the underdog," said Rustamzada. "But a win is a win!"
 
"We're young and we are learning how to finish games," she continued. "The Hawaii trip really helped us, and we had some great team bonding events. We are really meshing. We are a fun mixture of personalities and I love them all!"
 
The Sea Lions held the PacWest's leading scorer, Kelly Hardeman (20.1 ppg), to just 14 points on 6-of-25 shooting, and 1-of-12 from 3-point range. She did end with 18 rebounds for her 10th double-double of the season.
 
Point Loma will return home to face second-place California Baptist (14-3, 7-2 PacWest) on Saturday, Jan. 24 at 4:30. This will be the Lancers and Sea Lions' second meeting in a week. PLNU went to CBU last Saturday and handed the Lancers their first home loss of the season, 75-67. This game will also be a prelude to the men's contest which will be shown on Fox Sports San Diego, Fox Sports West and Prime Ticket in Los Angeles. The first 1,500 fans in attendance at the women's game will receive a replica jersey t-shirt.